Daxing International Airport opens in Beijing, Awards to celebrate PRC 70th anniversary

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Beijing's new mega airport opens today. Daxing International Airport is the second airport in the capital and will likely ease congestion at Beijing Capital International Airport

Building China’s $12BN Mega Airport

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 No stranger to record-breaking projects, China has now completed one of the largest airports ever conceived - the USD $12BN Daxing International in Beijing.

https://youtu.be/zSCFhgmLRLU

China opens new Beijing airport ahead of PRC anniversary

In this image made from CCTV video taken Sept. 17, 2019, an aerial view is seen of the new Beijing Daxing International Airport. The Chinese capital, Beijing, has opened a second international airport with a terminal billed as the world’s biggest. (CCTV via AP)

BEIJING (AP) — President Xi Jinping on Wednesday inaugurated a second international airport for the Chinese capital with the world's biggest terminal ahead of celebrations of the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC).

Beijing Daxing International Airport is designed to handle 72 million passengers a year. Located on the capital's south side, it was built in less than five years at a cost of 120 billion yuan ($17 billion).

The airline's first commercial flight, a China Southern Airlines plane bound for the southern province of Guangdong, took off Wednesday afternoon, state broadcaster CCTV reported. Six more flights took off later for Shanghai and other destinations.

The main Beijing airport, located in the city's northeast, is the world's second-busiest after Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and is nearing capacity.

Daxing, designed by the late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid, includes a terminal billed as the world's biggest at 1 million square meters (11 million square feet).

Despite that, its builders say travelers will need to walk no more than 600 meters (2,000 feet) to reach any boarding gate.

The vast, star-shaped airport is about 45 kilometers (30 miles) south of downtown Beijing. It has four runways, with plans for as many as three more.

Carriers including British Airways and state-owned China Southern, the country's biggest airline by passengers, plan to move to Daxing from Beijing Capital International Airport.

The capital has a third airport, Nanyuan, for domestic flights, but the government says that will close once Daxing is in operation.

Related:

Live: National awards ceremony to celebrate PRC 70th anniversary国家勋章和国家荣誉称号颁授仪式

https://youtu.be/SWUn03X7Mwc

Chinese President Xi Jinping signed a presidential decree on September 17 to award 42 Chinese and foreign individuals with national medals and honorary titles. The awards come as the People's Republic of China prepares to celebrate its 70th founding anniversary on October 1

Forty-two people were awarded national medals and honorary titles by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on September 29.

https://youtu.be/vS3_4gAAWtk

Thai princess speaks on behalf of China's Medal of Friendship recipients

https://youtu.be/Du6eHQOQQf0