While some smaller Chinese airports have struggled to drum up traffic, the country's top facilities are among the world's busiest:
Beijing Capital International Airport
The biggest airport in the country and the second-busiest in passenger traffic worldwide, with a total of 73.9 million last year. In January, 6.18 million passengers passed through, up 13.6 per cent up on the same month last year.
Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport
This airport opened in 2004, replacing another facility of the same name. With 41 million passengers last year, it was 16th globally and second nationwide. Just as China is building more airports, it is expanding existing ones, including Baiyun, which by 2015 will be able to handle 75 million passengers a year.
Shanghai Pudong International Airport
Serviced by the famous maglev (magnetic levitation) ultra high-speed train, Pudong experienced an increase of more than 25 per cent in the number of passengers last year, helped by the World Expo. The total of 40.4 million put the airport in 18th position worldwide and third nationwide.
Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport
The fourth-busiest airport in the country with 31.3 million passengers last year, up 30.2 per cent on 2009, Hongqiao opened a new terminal in March last year in time for the opening of the expo. Terminal two has capacity for 40 million passengers. The airport handles mainly domestic and regional traffic.
Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport
Based in the city where China's modern-day economic transformation began, this airport enjoyed a 9.1 per cent increase in passenger numbers last year to 26.7 million.
It ranked fifth nationally and 43rd worldwide, just ahead of Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, which recorded 25.8 million passengers.
[ business@thenational.ae ]
