Representatives of more than 70 foreign airlines from Europe and Asia arrived at Shijiazhuang Zhengding International Airport, the largest in the province, on June 6, as it opened its first large investment fair, aiming to promote the establishment of new lines connecting the capital city to more foreign cities.
The foreign airlines showed great enthusiasm regarding the airport's advantageous location - about 300 kilometers away from Beijing. It only takes about one hour to get from Beijing to the airport, following the opening of a high-speed train service in December of last year.
The Shijiazhuang airport has already built the basic airlines network connecting the city to the major domestic cities and many foreign cities that are popular tourist destinations. About 22 airways provide more than 50 lines, concerning more than 1,000 flights every week.
Many of airlines said they plan new regular services, including routes connecting Shijiazhuang and Jeju-do, Korea, and Shijiazhuang and Tallinn, Estonia.
Beijing faces the challenge of meeting the requirements of an increasing number of passengers with its limited traffic capacity. More than 81 million passengers used Beijing Capital International Airport last year, surpassing the designed capacity of 80 million.
Before the city's new airport starts operation in 2018, more than 37 million passengers in Beijing will have to be diverted to neighboring airports, which requires the coordinated efforts of the airports of Beijing, Tianjin and Shijiazhuang. |
