Korea South Transportation - 2023

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

National air transport system

number of registered air carriers: 14 (2020)

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 424

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 88,157,579 (2018)

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 11,929,560,000 (2018) mt-km

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

HL

Airports

111 (2021)

Airports - with paved runways

71

note: paved runways have a concrete or asphalt surface but not all have facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control; the length of a runway required for aircraft to safely operate depends on a number of factors including the type of aircraft, the takeoff weight (including passengers, cargo, and fuel), engine types, flap settings, landing speed, elevation of the airport, and average maximum daily air temperature; paved runways can reach a length of 5,000 m (16,000 ft.), but the “typical” length of a commercial airline runway is between 2,500-4,000 m (8,000-13,000 ft.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

40

note: unpaved runways have a surface composition such as grass or packed earth and are most suited to the operation of light aircraft; unpaved runways are usually short, often less than 1,000 m (3,280 ft.) in length; airports with unpaved runways often lack facilities for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control

Heliports

466 (2021)

Pipelines

3,790 km gas, 16 km oil, 889 km refined products (2018)

Railways

total: 3,979 km (2016)

standard gauge: 3,979 km (2016) 1.435-m gauge (2,727 km electrified)

Roadways

total: 100,428 km (2016)

paved: 92,795 km (2016) (includes 4,193 km of expressways)

unpaved: 7,633 km (2016)

Waterways

1,600 km (2011) (most navigable only by small craft)

Merchant marine

total: 2,063

by type: bulk carrier 84, container ship 99, general cargo 358, oil tanker 200, other 1,322 (2022)

Ports and terminals

major seaport(s): Busan, Incheon, Gunsan, Kwangyang, Mokpo, Pohang, Ulsan, Yeosu

container port(s) (TEUs): Busan (22,706,130), Incheon (3,353,781), Kwangyang (2,122,903) (2021)

LNG terminal(s) (import): Incheon, Kwangyang, Pyeongtaek, Samcheok, Tongyeong, Yeosu

Transportation - note

South Korea operates one PC 5 or 6 class light icebreaker
note - PC indicates a Polar Class vessel: PC 5 - year-round operation in medium first-year ice which may include old ice inclusions (ice thickness up to 70-120 cm); PC 6 - summer/autumn operation in medium first-year ice which may include old ice inclusions (ice thickness up to 30-70 cm)

NOTE: The information regarding Korea South on this page is re-published from the 2023 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Korea South 2023 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Korea South 2023 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.