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China starts building massive new Beijing airport

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China starts building massive new Beijing airport

26 December 2014 12:03

newbeijingairport.jpg


Construction on a huge new international passenger airport in Beijing began today, as booming demand for travel to and from China stretches the capacity of existing facilities.

Beijing’s current international airport is the world’s second busiest, but also one of the most delayed, with fewer than 20% of commercial passenger flights leaving on schedule according to a 2013 report.

The new facility located in southern Beijing is designed to handle 72 million passengers by annually by 2025, the official Xinhua news agency said.

The airport is set to cost 80 billion yuan (about R150 billion) and will be completed in about five years, Xinhua said, adding that it will be able to handle 620 000 flights a year.

Travel demand in China has soared as the country has grown to become the world’s second-largest economy and Beijing’s current international airport in the city’s northeast has begun to reach its capacity limits.

Beijing International Airport was the world’s second busiest airport in terms of passengers in 2013, Xinhua said, ranking behind Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in the United States.

But it is also the world’s most delayed, according to a study last year by US-based air travel information service FlightStats, which said just 18% of flights were on time.

About 42% of departures from Beijing suffered delays of 45 minutes or longer, the survey said.

Xinhua cited aviation authorities as saying that the current airport was unable to handle an additional 300 flights daily and almost 10 million passengers annually due to restraints.

Jet manufacturer Airbus said this month that China would oust the US in 2023 as the world’s biggest domestic air traffic market by passenger numbers, as economic development pushes demand for air travel.

Beijing also has another smaller commercial airport in the city’s southern area. The National Development and Reform Commission, China’s top economic planning agency, approved the airport plan this month, Xinhua said.

Sapa-AFP

China starts building massive new Beijing airport - City Press
 
China’s Gift to Airlines, Contractors, Retailers: Massive New Beijing Airport

TAIPEI, Taiwan (TheStreet) -- The Beijing suburb of Daxing is known now for super-sized watermelons. But in four years it will open a new international airport, making China's capital the world's busiest civil aviation hub.

If Chinese airport history is an indicator, the project will bring opportunities for foreign investors: airlines, aircraft makers, airport construction contractors and high-end retailers with outlets next to captive crowds of people awaiting flights. So which companies stand to benefit most?

"China certainly needs more airports to meet rising demand and is undertaking the largest such program in the world," says Kerry Brown, director of the University of Sydney China Studies Centre.

The new airport south of downtown Beijing will be designed to handle 620,000 passenger flights and 2 million metric tons of cargo per year, state-run China Daily said Dec. 19, citing the central government's National Development and Reform Commission.

The plan also calls for 14 maintenance areas and a terminal building with 700,000 square meters (7.535 million square feet) of floor space.

Once the $13.1 billion project opens, Beijing will be able to process 72 million passengers a year through three airports within the city limits. Beijing Capital International Airport, today's flagship, already ranked as the world's second-busiest airport last year with 83.7 million passengers, China Daily notes. Many were foreign business travelers who face time-hogging congestion today at existing airports.

But business travel is just the start of a long, lucrative trip for foreign investors. Although Chinese state-owned contractors will all but surely lead construction of the new airport, they normally pick foreign subcontractors such as Japanese elevator builder Hitachi (HTHIY) -- already ubiquitous in China -- for specialized technology. (Hitachi spokespeople did not answer a request for comment.)

The new airport's chief contractor may pick subcontractors used in the past for similar work in China, says Eric Lin, Asia transport analyst with UBS Investment Research in Hong Kong.

"If you're talking about suppliers and materials, there are a lot of foreign suppliers," Lin says.

Later, foreign airlines will want some of the new airport's spaces, expected to cover 150 parking aprons. As of November, Chinese citizens had taken 100 million outbound trips, the state newspaper says.

Whether non-Chinese airlines get spaces depends on negotiation skill and possibly membership in airline alliances that include major Chinese airlines, Lin says. One such alliance, Skyteam, includes foreign carriers Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Air France KLM (AFRAF) .

Airport expansion also dovetails with China's long-term quest to buy more aircraft, like Hong Kong-traded flagship carrier Air China's order with American supplier Boeing (BA) for 60 planes priced at a total $6 billion and to be delivered from 2016 to 2020. Boeing publicists were unavailable for comment.

A Chinese government-backed contractor will also manage retail at the new airport, Lin says. That company is likely to bring on foreign brands that already sell in airports under the same management .

"It is a bit surprising that Beijing's airport is at capacity, but I guess this shows just how quickly air travel is expanding in China," Brown says.
 
A new HSR will be built to connect the new airport with downtown Beijing。

That's great for transportation convenience. Here, the 台北捷运 is about connect the 台北市 with 太原机场, indeed will be a great convenience. A friend of mine working on the project told me that the trials are being conducted currently, including signalization. But, the job is being done by Siemens. :(
 
Very development step indeed. But I am always concerned about the environmental impact of such huge projects. Is the land going to be used is waste land or forest land or arriable land? In Gurgaon, most of the current projects are happening on farm land and thus turning fertile land into a barren desert. Is this same happening in China too?
 
That's great for transportation convenience. Here, the 台北捷运 is about connect the 台北市 with 太原机场, indeed will be a great convenience. A friend of mine working on the project told me that the trials are being conducted currently, including signalization. But, the job is being done by Siemens. :(

桃园机场。:-)

11 airports within an 85km radiu of the new airport::D

beijingnewairport.jpg


plus Shijiazhuang Airport 197km away。

12 in total。
 
Very development step indeed. But I am always concerned about the environmental impact of such huge projects. Is the land going to be used is waste land or forest land or arriable land? In Gurgaon, most of the current projects are happening on farm land and thus turning fertile land into a barren desert. Is this same happening in China too?

The government will spend over 20 billion yuan for the relocation of the villagers affected。

These people will become city or town dwellers and be given employment with businesses of all kinds in the surrounding areas。It is envisaged that some will work for the new airport which is set to create tens of thousands of jobs in services。

This is all part of the urbanization drive across the whole country。
 
Anything big is good, but I love medium size airport.
It would be faster.

Better they distribute the population not concentrate.
 
You know Beijing is the capital of China..
The population arriving and departing is huge..
That is why we need a big air port..

Anything big is good, but I love medium size airport.
It would be faster.

Better they distribute the population not concentrate.
 
I know. I just feel more comfortable to transit in a medium size airport.
 
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