China is set to open its new $12 billion Beijing Daxing International Airport in September, according to a report on The Washington Post.
The new gateway was designed by the late British architect Zaha Hadid and is set to be the largest in the world and will include a 3.37 million square-foot terminal and four runways.
The airport is expected to initially manage 72 million passengers and two million tonnes of cargo per annum by 2025, but will eventually have six runways and be able to handle more than 100 million passengers annually and four million tonnes of cargo per annum.
The phoenix-shaped hub in Beijing’s far south is reportedly part of a major project by the Chinese government to develop the plain that includes the cities of Beijing and Tianjin.
Biejing’s main hub Beijing Capital International Airport is capacity stretched and unable to provide the future capacity needed by the country’s fast-growing airlines.
Last year, it was the second busiest in the world and it welcomed 100.9 million passengers, only behind Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airpor;s 107 million.
China’s airport system cannot keep up with rising demand and a raft of airport developments are underway and planned for the future to provide the capacity.
Last year, airports in China welcomed 1.26 billion passengers, a 10.2 per cent rise on 2017, and it is set to overtake the United States as the globe’s biggest aviation market in 2022.
(Pictures courtesy of Zaha Hadid Arhitects)
