(Yicai) Dec. 26 -- Jiaxing Nanhu Airport in East China’s Zhejiang province began operations today, becoming China’s second purpose-built air cargo hub and the first in the Yangtze River Delta, as the world’s biggest e-commerce market steps up efforts to strengthen its transport network.

As the ninth civil aviation airport in Zhejiang, Jiaxing Nanhu Airport will primarily focus on cargo transport while also accommodating passenger flights. The terminal covers an area of 25,900 square meters and has 56 aircraft parking positions, with a designed annual passenger throughput of 1.8 million people and a cargo and mail handling capacity of 1.1 million tons.

China is expanding cargo airports to cope with rising parcel volumes and faster cross-border shipping needs, strengthening air freight support for online retail and high-value exports.

The first batch of passenger flights at the airport includes five routes operated by China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and local carrier Loong Airlines, connecting Jiaxing with Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, and Changchun. In addition, Yto Cargo Airlines, a subsidiary of express delivery giant Yto Express, is operating two all-cargo routes to Huizhou and Zhengzhou.

Before the Lunar New Year holiday in February next year, Jiaxing Nanhu Airport is expected to successively open five additional passenger routes to and from Kunming, Harbin, Chongqing, Xi’an, and Haikou.

Yto Cargo Airlines, which is headquartered at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, will be the main operator of cargo flights at Jiaxing Nanhu Airport. Five years ago, Yto Express partnered with the Jiaxing municipal government to jointly invest in the construction of an air logistics hub known as Yto Skyhub around the airport, which is expected to become fully operational next year.

Located near Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Suzhou, Jiaxing Nanhu Airport is surrounded by four expressways and several major waterways capable of handling 1,000-ton vessels, enabling multimodal transportation. The hub allows access to major cities in the Yangtze River Delta within one hour and to European and US markets within 10 hours, a Yto Skyhub representative told Yicai.

Before Jiaxing Nanhu Airport, China’s first professional air cargo hub, Ezhou Huahu International Airport, was launched in 2022 in central China’s Hubei province. The airport was jointly funded by SF Holding and the local government and serves as the main operating base for SF Airlines, the group’s cargo airline unit.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Emmi Laine