Seoul-Incheon International Airport (ICN) Spotting Guide

Full Name:
Incheon International Airport
IATA: ICN
ICAO: RKSI

Runways:
15R/33L 3750 m Asphalt
15L/33R 3750 m Asphalt
16/34 4000 m Asphalt

Statistics (2018)
Passengers: 68.259 mln
Aircraft Operations: 387 497

Hub for
Air Busan
Air Incheon
Air Seoul
Asiana Airlines
Eastar Jet
FedEx Express
Jeju Air
Jin Air
Korean Air
Polar Air Cargo
T’way Air

Airlines
Aeroflot
Aeroméxico
AirAsia X
Air Astana
Air Busan
Air Canada
Air China
Air France
Air India
Air Macau
Air New Zealand
Air Seoul
Alitalia
American Airlines
Asiana Airlines
Aurora
Bamboo Airways
British Airways
Cathay Pacific
Cebu Pacific
China Airlines
China Eastern Airlines
China Southern Airlines
Czech Airlines
Delta Air Lines
Eastar Jet
Emirates
Ethiopian Airlines
Etihad Airways
EVA Air
Finnair
Garuda Indonesia
Hawaiian Airlines
HK Express
Hong Kong Airlines
Jeju Air
Jetstar Airways
Jin Air
KLM
Korean Air
Lao Airlines
LOT Polish Airlines
Lufthansa
Malaysia Airlines
MIAT Mongolian Airlines
Myanmar Airways International
Pan Pacific Airlines
Peach Aviation
Philippine Airlines
Philippines AirAsia
Qatar Airways
Qingdao Airlines
Royal Brunei Airlines
S7 Airlines
Scoot
Shandong Airlines
Shenzhen Airlines
Sichuan Airlines
Singapore Airlines
Sky Angkor Airlines
Spring Airlines
Thai AirAsia X
Thai Airways
Tianjin Airlines
Tigerair Taiwan
Turkish Airlines
T’way Air
Uni Air
United Airlines
Uzbekistan Airways
VietJet Air
Vietnam Airlines
XiamenAir
Yakutia Airlines
ZIPAIR Tokyo

Cargo
Air China Cargo
Air France Cargo
Air Incheon
AirBridgeCargo
ANA Cargo
Asiana Cargo
Atlas Air
Cargolux
Cathay Pacific Cargo
China Cargo Airlines
China Postal Airlines
DHL Aviation
Emirates SkyCargo
Etihad Cargo
FedEx Express
Hong Kong Airlines Cargo
Korean Air Cargo
Lufthansa Cargo
Nippon Cargo Airlines
Okay Airways Cargo
Qantas Freight
Qatar Airways Cargo
SF Airlines
Silk Way Airlines
Sky Lease Cargo
Suparna Airlines
Turkish Airlines Cargo
UPS Airlines
Uzbekistan Airways Cargo
Volga-Dnepr Airlines

Summary
Incheon International Airport is the biggest airport in South Korea ana one of the main air hub in Northeastern Asia. With 68 mln passengers (2018) ICN is 18th World airport by passenger traffic. Airport is located 10 km west of Incheon’s city center and 50 km west from Seoul on a reclaimed area between Yeongjong and Yongyu Islands. ICN is a hub for almost all Korean passenger airlines and a main hub for biggest county’s carriers Korean Air and Asiana Airlines. These 2 airlines account for about 40% of aircraft movements at ICN. The rest is divided between lot of Asian air companies as well as some major airlines from Europe, North America, Middle East, Australia and Africa. ICN is also fourth busiest cargo airport in the World serving many international cargo airlines. ICN have some spotting locations within terminals and few points to make photos outside the airport’s perimeter.

History
1992: Construction of the airport begun.
2001: Airport opened with Terminal 1 and two 15/33 runways in operation.
2008: Third runway (16/34) was built. Concourse connected to the main passenger building via two parallel 870-metre-long underground passageways was added.
2018: Second passenger terminal was constructed in the northern field of the airport.
2020: Two more runways (one to the West and another to the East of the existing runways) is under construction to be completed in 2020.

Terminals
Incheon International Airport has two terminals. Terminal 1 operates 44 boarding gates and Concourse A connected to T1 by underground passageways has 30 gates. Terminal 2 opened in January 2018 has 37 boarding gates..

Runway usage
15R/33L is mainly used for departures, while 15L/33R is main landing runway for passenger traffic and also main cargo runway, both for landings and take-offs. Third runway 16/34 is used for passenger arrivals and departures in peak times.

Spotting locations

1. Terminal 1 Observation Deck
37.450040, 126.450255
Observation Deck on Level 4F in Terminal 1 provides the view to the main apron and connecting taxiways between runways. Photography is possible via two rows of glass windows so the reflection might be a problem.

2. Departure Area of Terminal 1 (Airside)
Inside the Terminal 1 there are some locations in the Departure areas after the check-in. Big windows both in the western and eastern part of Departure area provide view to the apron and a distant view to the runways.

3. Southern Perimeter Road
37.439704, 126.472091
The spot is located on the footpath running along the southern perimeter road. Use the Caltex gas station as a reference point. To get there take a shuttle bus from the terminal 1. Take the Airport Administration Building stop and then continue walking (10-15 minutes). The location is very good for 15/33 landings.

4. Eastern Perimeter Road
37.449307, 126.474954
Continue walking further east from Location 4 via Haneul Garden, cross the channel to get to the road running along the eastern perimeter of the airport.

5. Sky Deck
37.448854, 126.424267
This spot is very far from the terminals. To get there use taxi or take bus 308 from Terminal 1 departure level. Use Paradise Hotel bus stop to get off, then continue to walk up the hill. The location provide very distant view to runway 16/34 movements.

6. Terminal 2 Observation Deck
37.467213, 126.435143
There is an Observation Deck on the top level of new Terminal 2. The view through glass windows to the main apron and taxiways face the sun almost all seasons of the year.