(Yicai Global) May 9 -- Kunming in southwestern Yunnan province has been given the greenlight by the Chinese aviation authority to enhance the size of its international airport at a cost of CNY20.7 billion (USD3 billion), making it the latest airport in the region to be transformed into a major aviation hub.

The Kunming Changshui International Airport plans to add two new runways and boost its passenger throughout to 95 million people a year, up from 48 million in 2019, according to the China Aviation Administration of China. It will be able to handle one million metric tons of cargo a year and 633,000 take-offs and landings.

The airport, which is now 10-years old, urgently needs upgrading and expanding as the passenger throughput has already exceeded its designed capacity of 38 million people, CAAC said. The airport is one of the country’s top 10 airports in terms of passenger and cargo throughout.

Some of the older airports were built according to rather conservative traveler estimates, an aviation industry veteran told Yicai Global. During the 13th Five-year Plan, from 2016 – 2020, development of the civil aviation industry was based on greater expectations of regional economic growth.

Four airports in the west of the country have been undergoing extensive renovations and should reach the 100-million-passenger-a-year level in the next 10 years.

Chengdu in southwestern Sichuan province opened its second international airport, Tianfu International Airport, in June 2021, which ranked among the top ten largest airports in the country in terms of passenger throughput last year.

And Chongqing, a municipality in the southwest of the country, is expanding its Jiangbei International Airport to handle 80 million passengers and 1.2 million tons of cargo per year by the end of the year. By then 580,000 take-offs and landings will be possible.

Xi’an in western Shaanxi province is spending CNY46.9 billion (USD6.7 billion) to build the third-phase of its Xianyang International Airport, a project which will take just over five years. Once complete, the airport will have four terminals and four runways, an annual passenger throughout of 83 million people, and will be able to handle one million metric tons of cargo a year.

Editor: Kim Taylor