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SOUTH KOREA. Sang-Joon Ahn (pictured), the highly respected Director Airside Concession Team at Incheon International Airport Corporation (IIAC), is leaving to join Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL) as Vice President – Commercial, effective 20 February.
BIAL operates the highly successful Kempegowda International Airport (formerly Bengaluru International Airport) in Bengaluru, the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka.
His departure will follow soon after the announcement of the Incheon International Airport duty free tender results, expected imminently.
His inauguration is expected to lead to a renewed commercial momentum for the fast-growing Indian airport. Under the leadership of BIAL President Airport Operations Hari Marar, Ahn is to execute a new agenda to propel Bangalore International Airport’s commercial activities to an upgraded level.
Ahn said: “BIAL’s decision to take me onboard shows an eager willingness for another quantum-leap improvement after its successful operation over the last eight years. I am sure that Bangalore Airport will continue to strengthen its position in southern India as the main regional hub.”
Thanks to the rapid increase in passengers of up to +20% year-on-year, BIAL is working to build a new terminal in the next four years.
Ahn has worked for IIAC since February 1996, a time when Incheon International Airport was being constructed. He played a key role in its rise to become the world’s biggest airport in commercial revenue terms last year (including a world-record US$2 billion in duty free sales). Formerly IIAC Director Concession Team 1, he became Director of Airside Concession Team this January.
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The new Terminal 1A at Kempegowda International Airport, formerly Bengaluru International Airport, opened in late 2013 |
In particular he has focused on the sustainable growth of concession management combined with what he described as the “holistic serviceability of the airport”.
As a result of his expertise in airport commercial operations, passenger service and airport city developments, he also played a lead role in the opening of Erbil International Airport in Iraqi Kurdistan as well as the new terminal of Surabaya, the busiest international airport in East Java, Indonesia.
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BIAL is one of India’s most commercially progressive airport companies, adding a wide range of new consumer services in recent times |
