Former South Korean minister suggests new Jeju IR, new airport

Former South Korean Culture and Tourism Minister has advocated for Jeju, the semi-autonomous island home to casinos that are only available to foreigners, to explore allowing the construction of a new integrated resort (IR) with a casino in the Jungmun coastal area.

This action may be taken concurrently with the construction of Jeju’s second civil airport, should the plan be approved. The former minister, Kim Jong-min, said that with the backing of this proposed casino-resort complex, Jeju would be able to compete with other regional gambling locations, such South Incheon, Singapore, and Japan’s soon-to-come Osaka integrated resort (IR).

Approximately 70 minutes west of Jungmun is where the island’s second civil airport is planned to be constructed.

The first proposal to construct a second civil airport in Jeju was made in 1989. Next, a business plan was created with an estimated capital cost of KRW6.67 trillion (US$5.11 billion).

This kind of facility could accommodate slightly more than 19.9 million passenger flights per year thanks to its 3,200-meter (about 10,500-foot) runway. The present Jeju International Airport can handle over 25.9 million people a year and has two runways, one measuring 3,180 meters and the other 1,910 meters.

“Now is the ideal moment to establish a second civil airport,” said a spokesperson of the Airport Expansion Support Group. “The current airport’s passenger capacity has been above 90%.” Additionally, the group decided that building a second airport would be a better option than attempting to enlarge the present air hub, which would need regaining sea area.

Oh Young Hun, the provincial governor of Jeju, said in a statement prepared for the Tuesday casino policy conference that the government was “steadfast” in its resolve to promote market diversification in Jeju’s casino business via more foreign marketing.

The journal quotes Kim Kyung Hak, chairman of the Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Council, as saying that the “robust” expansion of the Jeju casino business has been facilitated by direct flights from major Chinese cities and increased connections from Hong Kong and Macau. The Covid-19 outbreak caused a notable decrease in tourism to Jeju, as it did to other destinations. Over the first weekend of this month, the first chartered passenger jet linked to tourism from mainland China to Jeju touched down.

Original story by: GGRAsia