{"text":[[{"start":9.6,"text":"Seoul’s Incheon airport said it had overtaken Dubai to become the world’s busiest airport for international passengers this year, after the number of people travelling to the Gulf hub declined due to the war in Iran."}],[{"start":22.44,"text":"The South Korean hub said it recorded 38.4mn international passengers in the first six months of this year, putting it above London’s Heathrow and Singapore’s Changi airports."}],[{"start":33.64,"text":"Across the whole of last year, Incheon had been third in international passenger traffic behind Dubai and Heathrow, followed by Changi, Schiphol in Amsterdam and Istanbul’s IGA airport."}],[{"start":45.24,"text":"Overall, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson in the US was still the world’s busiest airport, but much of its traffic is domestic."}],[{"start":52.4,"text":"Preliminary figures from global body Airports Council International released by Incheon on Thursday showed Dubai had fallen outside the top rankings after a sharp drop in visitor numbers. ACI said the figures were “subject to final validation” and it would publish the data next month."}],[{"start":69.12,"text":"The Gulf airport all but closed in the days following the start of the Iran conflict in late February. While Emirates airline restarted flights within days, the number of people travelling to and through the airport has yet to recover to prewar levels."}],[{"start":82.84,"text":"ACI data showed Dubai’s international passenger numbers fell from 7.4mn in February to 2.5mn in March. The figure has since climbed to roughly 4.7mn for June."}],[{"start":95.8,"text":"European and Asian airlines have recorded a rise in passengers flying directly between the two regions rather than transferring in the Middle East. Incheon has benefited from that shift, with more people flying directly to the Korean peninsula before transferring to travel elsewhere in the region."}],[{"start":null,"text":"
"}],[{"start":111.82,"text":"The number of people flying from Europe to Incheon to catch connecting flights rose by two-thirds during the first half compared with the same period a year earlier, the airport said."}],[{"start":122.3,"text":"“As the transfer function of Middle Eastern airports such as Dubai was weakened by the US-Iran conflict, existing air travel demand centred on Dubai — including routes between Dubai and Europe — shifted toward direct and connecting services through Incheon Airport,” it added."}],[{"start":138.08,"text":"South Korea has also been experiencing a tourism boom, driven by a rise in visitors from China and Japan and the popularity of cultural properties such as the KPop Demon Hunters film, as well as growth in its tech and beauty industries."}],[{"start":153.16,"text":"Virgin Atlantic this year also began flying to Incheon from Heathrow."}],[{"start":157.48,"text":"The airport, which opened in 2001, has been expanding and developing additional services to appeal to transfer passengers, including opening an in-terminal hotel and 24-hour sauna."}],[{"start":170.44,"text":"The terminal also includes free nap areas, a museum and robots that guide lost travellers."}],[{"start":181.68,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1786675134_1773.mp3"}