The renovation, led by Incheon International Airport Corporation, will replace mechanical, electrical, telecommunication and firefighting systems that were installed 25 years ago to bring them in line with current safety regulations, Korea Joongang Daily reported.

The terminal’s baggage handling system will also be upgraded from selective screening to 100% screening, Yonhap News Agency reported.

“We plan to complete the design by September next year and break ground in 2028,” Cho Sung-mi, head of the corporation’s corporate strategy team, was quoted as saying at a press briefing at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport on Sept. 1.

Incheon International Airport has two passenger terminals, T1 and T2.

T1 serves most airlines, including Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Jeju Air, Japan Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Emirates while Terminal 2 serves Korean Air and its subsidiaries and affiliates, including Asiana Airlines, which relocated there in January 2026, as well as Jin Air, Air Busan and Air Seoul.

IIAC plans to renovate Terminal 1 with lessons from Schiphol Airport, a 60-year-old European hub that is undergoing a comprehensive redesign of its facilities because there is insufficient land to build a new airport.

The renovation will also combine Incheon Airport’s currently separate six departure and arrival halls into a unified system.

Duty-free and commercial areas will be rearranged to improve passenger flows.

To keep Terminal 1 operational during the project, the renovation will be divided into at least three zones and carried out sequentially.

IIAC is also considering an alternative plan to build a temporary replacement terminal on available land, which would allow Terminal 1 to undergo a full renovation at the same time.

Once the project is completed, Terminal 1’s annual passenger capacity is expected to rise from 54 million to 64 million.

Incheon International Airport, ranked the world’s second best behind Singapore Changi in the 2026 Skytrax World Airport Awards, handled 38.39 million international passengers in the first half of this year, up 6.3% year-on-year.

The airport serving South Korea’s capital Seoul has seen a surge in popularity partly due to the U.S.-Iran conflict, which has prompted airlines to divert passengers from Middle Eastern hubs such as Dubai to alternative routes through Asia, Korea Times reported.