Gov't to select new site for Daegu airfield by year's end

South Korea will select a new airport site to replace the one currently in operation in Daegu by the end of this year as an official analysis gave the relocation project a green light, the defense ministry said Thursday.

In an assessment carried out by 21 experts, the government's plan to relocate the Daegu International Airport to another city within the Gyeongsang region garnered 800 points out of 1,000, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement.

The airport, located within the city 302 kilometers southeast of Seoul, can currently handle civilian airplane traffic as well as military jets.

Under the relocation plan, the government said that the military airfield and civilian airport will be integrated into one.

At present Yeongcheon, Uiseong and Guneui are all vying to attract the airport. The three are all located in North Gyeongsang Province.

In the assessment, experts mainly looked at how the government will utilize the current sites of the present airport and how it will be able to raise funds to build a new airport, the statement said.

"The government plans to develop the existing airport site to secure funding to build the new regional air transportation hub," a ministry official said.

The government has been seeking to move the airports in line with persistent demands from local residents who have complained of aircraft noise, development restrictions and other issues.

The relocation project has been put on a fast track after President Park Geun-hye called on her government last month to forge ahead with the move. (Yonhap)