CHENGDU -- An Airbus 320 aircraft of Chengdu Airlines landed at the Dazhou Jinya Airport Thursday, marking the launch of the new airport in the mountainous city of Dazhou, Southwest China's Sichuan province.

The airport is 19 km away from the downtown of Dazhou, which is located in the core area of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle in west China.

Built with an investment of 2.66 billion yuan (about $393.7 million), the new airport is designed to meet the annual passenger throughput of 2.35 million and the annual cargo throughput of 21,000 tonnes by 2030.

In the long-term, the airport is expected to be expanded to boast 5 million passenger throughput and 45,000 tonnes of cargo throughput annually with more than 48,000 aircraft flying through in 2045.

China vowed in March to accelerate the construction of an airport cluster for the development of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle, which is an important regional development strategy, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China.