Muan International Airport guide

Muan International Airport opened in November 2007 as South Jeolla province's dedicated gateway, built on reclaimed coastal land in Muan County to replace the smaller Mokpo Airport and eventually absorb Gwangju Airport's international routes. Passenger numbers grew slowly through its first decade, peaking at roughly 895,000 in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic cut traffic sharply; low-cost carriers later rebuilt demand with short-haul leisure routes to Japan, Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

On 29 December 2024, a flight arriving from Bangkok overran the runway on landing and struck a berm encasing the concrete structure that supported the localizer antenna, positioned 250 metres beyond the runway end. The crash killed 179 of the 181 people aboard, the deadliest air disaster in South Korean history, and halted all scheduled commercial flights while investigators examined the accident and authorities began replacing the rigid barrier with a frangible one.

As of September 2026 the airport remains closed to commercial traffic. Limited training and emergency flights resumed in February 2025, but officials in Muan County and the surrounding province have continued pressing the national government for a firm date to restore scheduled service, without success so far.