The Board of Audit and Inspection found that passenger demand for Ulleung Airport, which is currently under construction, and Heuksan Airport, for which construction plans have been drawn up, was overestimated. The board noted the need to reexamine business feasibility or adjust facility size.
There was also criticism that Ulleung Airport's runway is too short. In rainy weather, braking distances increase, making it impossible for aircraft to land at the airport.
On the 23rd, the Board of Audit and Inspection released the results of its audit into the promotion status of local airport construction projects. The board said, "We conducted the audit to diagnose problems at each stage of the construction of Ulleung, Heuksan, and Saemangeum airports, which are currently being designed and built, and to support efficient project execution."
The audit found signs that passenger demand had been calculated abnormally. In particular, Ulleung Airport was criticized for lacking operational safety. For Heuksan Airport, lax project management related to the increase in total project cost was identified, and a caution was issued to those responsible for project management.
According to the Board of Audit and Inspection, while promoting the construction projects for Ulleung and Heuksan airports, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport forecast air travel demand to assess project feasibility and determine the appropriate scale of airport facilities. In this process, the board said the total passenger demand for island areas was overestimated compared with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries' port development plans. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport calculated total passenger demand to increase in line with future gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates, while the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries calculated total passenger demand by reflecting past trends in the rise and fall of maritime passenger demand. A comparison of the two methods showed that, based on 2040, total passenger demand for Ulleung and Heuksan areas was overestimated in the land ministry's plan by 94,000 people for Ulleung Airport and 437,000 for Heuksan Airport compared with the oceans ministry's plan.
There was also criticism that the method for estimating how much travelers would switch from sea to air was unreasonable. Mode-shift surveys should set up various scenarios for time and expense by mode of transport, and build a statistical model based on a questionnaire survey. However, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport conducted the survey using only one scenario—the cheapest and fastest case for air compared with sea—and thus overestimated the shift rate. It also did not verify whether the estimated shift rate was realistic.
When the Board of Audit and Inspection commissioned a specialized institution during the audit period to remedy these issues and recalculate passenger demand for Ulleung and Heuksan airports, it found that, based on 2050, Ulleung Airport would decrease by 49% (1,078,000→550,000), and Heuksan Airport by 83% (1,080,000→182,000).
The Board of Audit and Inspection said it is necessary to prepare appropriate measures, such as reexamining business feasibility or adjusting facility size. It also issued a caution to the Minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to prevent excessive passenger demand estimates when promoting local airport construction projects in the future.
There was also criticism that Ulleung Airport is vulnerable in operational safety. In Jun. 2023, while upgrading Ulleung Airport's class to 3C, which allows operation by 80-seat aircraft, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport kept the runway length at the originally planned 1,200 meters. In line with this, the Busan Regional Office of Aviation selected two types of 80-seat design aircraft and set criteria limiting the number of passengers and cargo per aircraft to enable takeoffs and landings on a 1,200-meter runway.
When the Board of Audit and Inspection evaluated whether the restriction criteria were appropriate, it found that the basic operating weight of the aircraft was applied 700 kilograms lower by using a discontinued old model, leading to an overestimation of up to seven passengers per takeoff. Notably, for one of the two aircraft types, the board confirmed that if the braking distance increases by 15% in rainy weather, landing would be impossible even with no passengers on board.
In a survey of 20 pilots by the Board of Audit and Inspection, 14 respondents said, "The current runway length at Ulleung Airport is a burden for takeoffs and landings." Nineteen respondents answered that "it is necessary to extend the runway length for safe operations."
The Board of Audit and Inspection said, "If inappropriate aircraft restriction criteria and insufficient safety measures are left unaddressed, they become a threat to aviation safety," adding, "There is a risk the airport facilities will be underused due to airlines' deteriorating profitability and pilots' reluctance to operate," as it called for countermeasures.