URUMQI -- Chinese authorities have approved the project of building the first plateau airport in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Located in Tajik autonomous county of Taxkorgan, the new airport is designed to handle 160,000 passengers and 400 tonnes of cargo and mail a year, according to the Xinjiang Regional Administration of the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

With an investment of around 1.63 billion yuan ($230 million), the new airport will include a runway, 3,800 meters long and 45 meters wide, a terminal building, a control tower and other auxiliary facilities involving fuel feeding, power supply and fire rescue.

The project was recently approved by the National Development and Reform Commission, the administration said.

It is expected to make travel easier for local residents, improve capabilities of emergency rescue and promote regional economic and social development.

Situated in the east of the Pamir Plateau, Tajik has an average altitude of over 4,000 meters.