Incheon Airport Installs Fences After Repeated Queue-Jumping by Passengers

[Anchor]

Recently, a video of Chinese passengers cutting in line en masse at an Incheon International Airport departure hall sparked controversy. As queue-jumping persisted despite staff interventions that even led to injuries, Incheon Airport has ultimately installed fences to address the issue.

Reporter Kim Gyu-ri has the story.

[Reporter]

On July 8 at Incheon International Airport.

Passengers dragging large suitcases rush toward a destination en masse.

Some do not hesitate to bend down and slide underneath multiple layers of safety barriers set up to maintain order.

This happened shortly after the China Southern Airlines check-in counter for a flight to Beijing opened in the airport's third-floor check-in zone.

They are presumed to be Chinese daigou (shopping proxy) merchants who wanted to check in first, and the video of this mass queue-jumping spread via social media, causing a controversy.

[Park Ji-yoon / Kim Woo-bin, Incheon Airport passengers: From the perspective of someone waiting in line together, it is quite absurd, and it makes me feel rushed as if I need to get in quickly, too.]

Similar situations repeated several times last month at this particular counter, and staff members guiding the lines were even injured after being trampled by the crowds.

Ultimately, the airport authorities installed anti-queue-jumping fences at the counter in early August.

While passengers could easily slip under the traditional barriers by bending down, the area is now blocked by fences, and warning sheets have been attached so they can be easily recognized from a distance.

Much like bird collision prevention films attached to transparent soundproof walls along roadsides, this device is designed to prevent passengers from failing to notice the fence and crashing into it, causing injury.

[Airport retail store employee: After it appeared on the news and those fences were put up, it has gotten a bit better. There are still a lot of Chinese visitors, though.]

Incheon Airport stated that the fences were installed on a pilot basis following consultations with the airline, explaining that the measure was not targeted at any specific country but aimed at ensuring order and protecting the safety of both visitors and staff.

(Video by Choi Dae-woong | Video Editing by Lee Hong-myung | Graphics by Han Heung-soo)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.