Seoul’s Incheon Airport gears up for surge of BTS fans this week
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BTS is set to release its fifth album on March 20 and will hold an outdoor concert on March 21.
PHOTO: AFP
SEOUL – South Korea is ramping up immigration operations at Incheon Airport, deploying extra staff and expanding passport control capacity ahead of a surge in overseas visitors expected for K-pop boy band BTS’ performance on March 21.
Effective from March 18, immigration officials began working extra hours, while non-immigration airport staff started assisting with immigration duties, according to the Ministry of Justice.
More passport control zones are being operated than usual, and additional personnel have been deployed to guide foreign visitors to less crowded checkpoints.
The measures are aimed at easing anticipated congestion at immigration checkpoints and reducing waiting times for foreign visitors, the ministry said.
Further steps to ease crowding at the country’s main airport will be discussed at a meeting on March 19 involving the Justice Ministry, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Incheon Airport Immigration Office and the Incheon International Airport Corporation.
Officials will review ways to improve immigration processing for foreign travellers, including adjusting flight schedules, managing passenger flows and upgrading related infrastructure.
“The ministry will seek effective ways to reduce waiting times for foreign visitors at Incheon International Airport, contributing to tourism and the revitalisation of the local economy,” the ministry said.
BTS, one of the world’s most successful boy bands, has a massive fan base in South Korea and abroad. The group is set to release its fifth album, Arirang, on March 20 and will hold an outdoor concert, BTS The Comeback: Arirang, in Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul, on March 21. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
