The number of people using airports is expected to peak Sunday as many return from the long Chuseok holiday, transportation authorities said.  

According to Korea Airport Corp. and Incheon International Airport Corp., the number of people using South Korean airports is expected to surpass 431,300, the highest daily figure reached during the five-day-long holiday that began on Wednesday. The total includes both South Korean and foreign travelers.

Chuseok is Korea's autumn harvest holiday that fell on Thursday this year. As one of the country's most important traditional holidays, people often choose to visit their home towns to meet family and friends, with others also taking advantage of the long break to go on overseas trips.

Among airports, Incheon International Airport, South Korea's main gateway to the outside world, will likely handle some 180,500 people in the one-day period. This is the largest number during the holiday period, with 94,700 people to arrive and the rest set to depart IIA.   
"Arrivals are likely to be people who went abroad during the holiday period," an IIAC official said.  

Excluding Incheon, the 14 other airports that generally handle domestic flights will process more than 25,700 passengers.

Both KAC and IIAC said they will operate situation rooms to handle the spike in passenger traffic, help people make their flights and make it easier to get to their final destination from the local airports.  

"In particular, shuttle bus and train services linking the airports to nearby cities will be extended so people can reach their destinations more conveniently," authorities said.

In the case of IIA, airport officials said they are bracing for a spike in arrivals between 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., with efforts being made to prevent pile-ups at immigration that can unnecessarily inconvenience travelers. (Yonhap)