The project to nearly double the size of the international passenger terminal at Cheongju International Airport has entered the preliminary feasibility study process. The move follows a rise in foreign tourists using regional airports and a rapid increase in demand for international routes. As demand grows to expand airport ancillary facilities such as terminals, parking lots, and aprons, airport construction is emerging as a new non-residential order source for builders.
According to related agencies on the 7th, the Public and Private Infrastructure Investment Management Center at the Korea Development Institute (KDI) recently announced the expansion of the international passenger terminal at Cheongju International Airport as a target project for the "2026 second preliminary feasibility study of public institution projects." Led by Korea Airports Corporation (KAC), the project aims to expand the international terminal at Cheongju Airport to respond to the growing number of foreign tourists and the demand for international flights.
The Cheongju Airport international passenger terminal expansion will be carried out with a total floor area of 27,500㎡. The total project cost is 239.4 billion won, which Korea Airports Corporation (KAC) plans to fund from its own resources. The project period is set from 2027 to 2032. Once the expansion is complete, Cheongju Airport's international passenger handling capacity will increase from the current level of 1.52 million per year to about 3 million.
Once the expansion is complete, Cheongju Airport's international passenger handling capacity will increase from the current level of 1.52 million per year to about 3 million. In effect, it will nearly double the international terminal's processing capacity. Cheongju Airport has recently seen international demand rise rapidly, drawing assessments that the existing facilities alone would struggle to handle medium- to long-term demand.
Cheongju Airport's growth stands out even among regional airports. Last year, total users at Cheongju Airport reached 4.67 million, a record high. Of these, international passengers numbered about 1.94 million, already exceeding the current capacity of the international terminal. Expanded routes to Japan and Southeast Asia, increased service by low-cost carriers (LCCs), and the effect of absorbing some demand from the southern Seoul metropolitan area all played a part. According to the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), from January to May this year, more than 50,000 foreign tourists entered via Cheongju Airport, up more than 114% from the same period last year.
Korea Airports Corporation (KAC) is expanding not only the international terminal but also ancillary facilities such as the domestic terminal, parking lots, and aprons. The expansion of the Cheongju Airport domestic passenger terminal is proceeding at 4,770㎡, and the second parking building will be built at 34,000㎡. Including the international terminal expansion, Cheongju Airport's infrastructure expansion is expected to exceed 300 billion won.
The government and the tourism industry are also boosting the use of regional airports. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) launched the "regional airport international tourism hub task force (TF)" in Apr. to change the inbound tourism structure concentrated on arrivals at Incheon Airport. They designated Cheongju Airport and Daegu Airport as focus airports and are jointly pursuing route expansion, development of wide-area tourism content, and improvements to tourism infrastructure.
The push to expand regional airport infrastructure is not limited to Cheongju Airport. As demand for international routes at regional airports rises, there is a growing likelihood that airport-related construction volumes—terminals, runways, aprons, parking lots, and access transportation networks—will expand in stages.
Amid a slump in the dwellings market, airport expansions are considered public and special-building orders where builders can apply large-scale building and civil engineering capabilities at once. Interest is expected to grow among builders with airport project track records, such as HJ Shipbuilding & Construction, Kumho E&C, and Daewoo Engineering & Construction.
A construction industry official said, "Airport projects have more stringent security, passenger flow, and facility standards than general buildings, and they are complex infrastructure projects that combine not only passenger terminals but also runways and security and control facilities," adding, "Once terminal expansions get underway in earnest, they can lead to upgrades of ancillary facilities and follow-up work, so builders are bound to be highly interested."