Incheon International Airport Corp. president Park Wan-su will meet Delta Airlines CEO Richard Anderson later this month to discuss ways to increase the number of transfer passengers at the Korean airport, officials said Wednesday.

“The top executives will meet on Dec. 16 when Park visits Delta’s Atlanta headquarters,” said a ranking airport official. “They are highly likely to discuss moving the airline’s Asian hub from Narita to Incheon.”

Incheon Airport, the main gateway to Korea, has recently been struggling with a decline in transfer passengers ― a crucial part of the airport’s goal of becoming a hub airport in northeastern Asia.

This year, the airport’s transfer rate fell to 15.4 percent from last year’s 18 percent.

Park, who took the helm of the airport operator in October, has pointed to elevating the number of transfer passengers as one of his key agendas during his tenure.

Japan’s Narita International Airport is the Asian hub for many foreign-based airlines, including Delta. As the airport is run at almost full capacity, Incheon Airport is seeking to lure some of the airlines.

Delta has also poured resources into expanding its presence in the soaring Asian market in recent years. Since 2010, the company has increased its number of Asian routes by 30 percent, including a new route opening between Incheon and Seattle in June.

“Korea is one of the trickiest markets for foreign airlines due to the dominance of the two flag carriers ― Korean Air and Asiana Airlines,” said another official. “Depending on the talks with Delta, we could embrace more companies.”

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)