S. Korea's Air Traffic Surges to Record High in 2016

 South Korea's air traffic soared to an all-time high in 2016, spiking 9% from a year before, the Korean Transportation Ministry said Tuesday.

    In 2016, the country's overall air traffic came to about 738,000 flights, averaging 2,018 flights per day, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

    With the 9% on-year gain last year, the country's air traffic increased an average 7.6% per year for the past five years, far outpacing the global average of 4.7%, it noted, according to Yonhap news agency.

    The increase in 2016 was largely attributed to a sharp rise in international flights. International flights to and from the country jumped 12.6% on-year to 448,145, while domestic flights gained 4.4% to 243,975, according to the ministry.  The ministry earlier said international air passengers to and from South Korea spiked 18.1% on-year to some 73 million last year. 

    The ministry said the country's air traffic will continue to expand this year. "There still remain uncertainties caused by increased competition and growing volatility in the foreign exchange market, but the government expects air traffic to continue increasing for some time due to a rise in tourism demand," it said.