The baggage-handling debacle at Incheon International Airport on Sunday and Monday was caused by a jam of outsize luggage, the Korea Airports Corporation said Tuesday.
Airport administration had failed to station enough workers to load the baggage by hand on a day of record traffic at the end of the New Year holidays.
The amount of outsize baggage was 17 to 18 times bigger than usual, causing the baggage handling system to fail.
But there were only 150 workers at hand to manually load the cargo, and the extra 130 hastily dispatched when the handling system jammed were unable to relieve the problem. That led to 160 flights being delayed and armies of passengers being left without their belongings.
The automated system at the airport is capable of handling up to around 12,600 pieces of baggage an hour. Airport officials claim there were no malfunctions in the system and only around 7,500 pieces of luggage per hour were received during peak hours on Sunday.
More investigation is clearly needed. One aviation expert said, "Rather than arriving at quick conclusions, we need to investigate the entire operations of the airport, including the baggage handling system."
Former KAC president Kang Dong-seok said, "Airport officials and airlines must cooperate closely and dispatch an ample number of workers especially during peak hours until the second terminal eases congestion. Another solution could be to increase the proportion of flights taking off at night to disperse the luggage throughout the day."
Incheon Airport is building a second terminal slated for completion in 2017 as its current terminal has reached capacity.
