China's five-year plan drives airport boom

Print Article E-Mail Article

The continued development of China's airport network has been declared a priority under the country's Tenth Five-Year Plan. Special emphasis is being given to airports in the western region, to help alleviate income disparities. A total of 23 of the 43 new airports to be built under the plan will be in this region. According to the State Development Planning Commission (SDPC), airport development in the western region will focus on domestic connections and popular tourist areas such as Chengdu and Lhasa, the gateway to Tibet.

Additional opportunities for international airport management and duty-free operators may be expected if more airports convert to private-public status such as the Shanghai Airport Group, operator of Shanghai's Pudong and Hongqiao airports. Pudong opened in 2000 and the city recently announced plans to revive the airport, which has struggled to attract international flights away from the existing city centre Hongqiao airport. World Duty Free walked away from its Pudong airport operation in 2001. A city centre check-in facility and a rapid train link from Pudong to Shanghai city are planned.

Meanwhile the open-minded policy of the CAAC (Civil Aviation Authority of China) will allow more local governments to raise funds for airports. Aeroports de Paris took a 9.9% stake in Beijing airport in 2001 for example, and Beijing merged operations with Tianjin Binhai International airport, the first such cross-regional merger. While foreign participation in air traffic management is still not allowed, China welcomes foreign investors in the construction and operation of terminals and other ground facilities.

Under the Five-Year Plan two new international hub airports will be completed in Chengdu and Xian and five regional hub airports will be established in Chongqing, Guilin, Kunming, Lanzhou and Urumqi.

After initial funding problems, the massive Guangzhou Baiyun International airport is also scheduled to open in October 2003. Guangzhou recently received a $230m investment boost from China Southern Airlines which is building a new headquarters and maintenance facility. It will become mainland China's third airport after Beijing and Shanghai.