[THE INVESTOR] Incheon International Airport, South Korea’s main international gateway, is facing an uphill battle to become Asia’s top air hub as its share of transit passengers continued to dip for three consecutive years.

According to Incheon International Airport Corp., the number of transit passengers during the first half of the year stood at 3.58 million, which is a 4.1 percent drop from 3.74 million tallied during the same period last year.

The statistics show that the number of stopover passengers accounted for 13 percent of total passengers using the airport. The figure has been declining for three years in a row after reaching its peak at 18.7 percent in 2013. 

The disappointing figure is taking a toll on the airport’s long standing plan to be an aviation hub with the transit share exceeding 20 percent.

Other well-connected aviation hubs boast high rates such as Netherland’s Schiphol airport with 39 percent of transit share and Incheon’s rival Narita Airport in Japan with 16 percent.

IIAC said the decrease in stopover passengers can be attributed to the structural and environmental factors including the rapid growth of low-cost carriers that have advanced into the short and medium distance routes.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)