Incheon International Airport, the main gateway to South Korea, saw its busiest year ever in 2014 thanks mainly to a jump in Chinese passengers and growth of low-cost carriers, its operator said Wednesday.

The Incheon International Airport Corp. said in a provisional tally that a total of 45.51 million people used the airport in 2014, up 9.7 percent from the previous year and the highest yearly number since its opening.

International passenger traffic rose 10.1 percent on-year to 44.9 million in 2014.

Cargo traffic also increased 3.8 percent on-year to 2.56 million tons while the operation of flight services jumped 6.9 percent to 290,000.

The airport had only 21 million users in 2002, one year after it opened, but the number has since grown by an annual average of 6.7 percent. In 2013, the yearly number of users topped 40 million for the first time since the airport opened, making it one of the world's largest airports.

The company attributed last year's growth to low fuel prices, a surge in Chinese travelers, and opening of new air routes between South Korea and China. The growth of low-budget airlines was also seen as a contributing factor.

Some 10.86 million Chinese travelers passed through the Incheon airport last year, up 21.9 percent from the previous year and accounting for 23.9 percent of the airport's entire users, according to the company.

Low-budget airlines carried 6.17 million passengers via Incheon International Airport last year, up 26.3 percent from the previous year.

The operator expected 48.14 million travelers to pass through the airport, west of Seoul, this year, up 5.8 percent from last year. (Yonhap)