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Aviation History
2001
2001 - 0603.PDF
•iMiiamiiKum* Japan's $13.$ billion Kansai Airport near Osaka has already reached capacity Changi Airport's Terminal 3 opens in 2006. It is the battle for lucrative transit traffic that is * likely to mean the difference between profit and loss. "Our success largely depends on how many transit and transfer passengers Incheon will have," says Dong-Suk Kang, Incheon Inter national Airport's chairman and chief executive. "We hope at least 30% of our total passengers will be transfer and transit passengers." COMPETING AIRPORTS Asia's new airports face varying degrees of com petition. KLIAcompetes directly with Bangkok and Singapore for traffic on the busy corridor between Europe and Australia/New Zealand, operating from a relatively undeveloped country with a small population base. Two airlines have pulled out of Kuala Lumpur since the $2.8 bil lion airport opened, even before the new facili ties in Thailand and Singapore come on line. KLIA opened with an initial capacity of 25 million passengers a year, but it has yet to serve more than 15 million passengers annually. Customers complain of the travelling time from Kuala Lunmur, which should be reduced when a rail link toxhe airport is completed. Some Malaysians save money by driving to Singapore and flying from Changi, which is acknowledged as one of the world's best air- FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 20 - 26 February 2001 norts. Changi broke ground on its S$ 1.5 billion ($870 million), 350,000m2 (3.7 million ft2) Terminal 3 in October. The new terminal will process 20 million passengers a year, bringing Changi's total annual capacity to 64 million. Thailand hopes to finish the long-delayed Suwannabhumi by December 2004, before Changi completes its new terminal. Ground work is almost complete at the Nong Ngu Hao site 30km east of Bangkok and the design is being finalised. Thai Airways International is making plans to move into the new airport. Although airline executives are doubtful that the December 2004 deadline will be met, SittagpongThanitayawong, Thai's senior vice- president of corporate planning, says "we have to stick to that date" for planning purposes. When the new airport opens, crowded Don Muang Airport Will close, and Suwannabhumi will become the country's primary internation al gateway. Thailand s central location and powerful tourism industry make it an attractive stopover for airlines, but the facilities, capacity, and land ing charges at the new airport are still to be decided, and it remains to be seen whether the Thai Government will loosen its restrictive avi ation policy that limits the number of inbound flights to help protect Thai Airways. FOR AIRLINES and passengers alike, Incheon International Airport will be a welcome change from Kimpo Airport near Seoul. Kimpo is just 13 years old - it opened for the summer Olympics in 1988 - but it is crowded and offers only basic amenities. Incheon will open on 29 March with two runways and an initial capacity of 27 million passengers and 1.7 million tonnes of cargo a year. It will be expand able to five runways, 100 million passen gers and 7 million tonnes of cargo. Unlike Kimpo, which is closed from 23.00 to 06.00, Incheon will be open round the clock and it has enough space to allow airlines to construct their own cargo, maintenance and other facilities. Check-in counters and airline slots will increase accordingly: Korean Air plans to use 1.5 times more check-in gates per flight at Incheon than at Kimpo. Built on an artificial island 60km (40 miles) from Seoul, Incheon has no noise restrictions. Wind direction is constant 98% of the time and it gets 30% less fog than Kimpo. Runway separation is 414m (1,360ft), allowing simultaneous take- offs. When a third runway is complete, the 2,075m separation will allow simulta neous take-offs and landings. Category Ilia equipment allows take-offs in 200m visibility, while Kimpo has Category III equipment, which requires 300m visibility. Incheon's $1.2 billion, 1.3 million km2 (496,000 miles2) terminal is the second biggest in Asia, dwarfing the 622,000km2 terminal at Kuala Lumpur and the 780,000km2 terminal at Kansai; only Hong Kong's 1.4 million km2 terminal is larger. The Incheon terminal has floor- to-ceiling windows, roomy departure lounges and valet parking. Each gate at Incheon has two boarding bridges, com pared with the single bridges at Kimpo. Transit facilities include a 90-room hotel, 51 internet kiosks, child and baby care centres, four transit lounges, five smoking lounges, 18 information booths, 43 food and beverage shops, 17 money changers, 42 retail outlets, three business centres and three pharmacies. Shopping is abundant as well. Four companies have acquired duty-free space, creating price competition, and a mall has been incorporated within the facility. "Some airports have hotels and major shopping malls next to their air port building, so we are developing the hotel and shopping mall within the air port facility area to attract passengers," says Dong-Suk Kang, chairman and chief 35
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