(www.asiatraveltips.com 2004-08-02)
The new and much anticipated
GuangZhou Baiyun International Airport is slated to open this week.
After four years of intense construction, the dazzling new
GuangZhou Baiyun International Airport will soon be unveiled to the world. This new airport will instantly become one of China's three largest gateway airports, serving as a window to the world of Guangzhou's unrelenting modernization and future visage of air transportation in the booming Pearl River Delta, said Mr. Li Kun, Vice President, China Southern Airlines
The new
GuangZhou Baiyun International Airport is situated north of
GuangZhou - 23 kilometers away from the current city airport.
The current city airport - opened in 1957 - covers an area of more than 3 Million square meters, with 83 domestic and 25 international routes in daily operation, and after more than 46 years is still the largest Chinese airport for daily take-offs & landings and flight frequencies. In 2003, the airport handled more than 142,000 take-offs and landings; a throughput of 15,012,700 passengers and 544,000 tons of cargo, mail and luggage. Today, like an aging bus station, the current city airport is overtaxed and simply cannot manage the growth projected for Guangdong Province over the next decade.
In a vast area spanning more than seven kilometers long by three kilometers wide, the new
GuangZhou Baiyun International Airport is divided into three large zones: offices, terminal and aircraft maintenance and cargo facilities all situated in the south, center and north sections between the two runways.
The massive passenger terminal structure of the new airport is composed of one main terminal, two connected terminals and four main corridors. The connected terminals and passenger corridors are symmetrically situated on the two sides of the main terminal, which is centered on the central axis of the new airport with the left and right sides symmetrical to each other.
The terminal building covers an area spanning 350,000 square meters and is expected to manage more than 25 Million passengers per year through 2010. The exterior of the terminal building features a natural smooth arc anchored by a massive steel superstructure and gleaming glass walls. This magnificent glass and steel terminal palace - from east to west - spans 220 meters and a ceiling height of more than 55 meters. The roof of the main terminal building is made of transparent copings in a tension film structure.
The overall ambiance of the main building offers travelers an elegant style with a relaxed cultured modern flavor, illustrating the Pearl River Delta's transportation leap forward into the future. In the center of the terminal are 32 palm trees which have been safely chemically treated to remain vibrant and colorful.
The airport's flight zone covers an area of more than 720,000 square meters and is divided into two flight areas with two individual runways paralleling each other. The east flight area was designed with ICAO 4F airport standards, meeting the requirements for the maximum take-off weight of the largest Airbus A380 aircraft. The west flight area was designed with ICAO 4E airport standards. The runway in the east flight area is 3,800m x 60m - while the runway in the west flight area is 3,600m x 45m.
Parking is available for private automobiles is situated on the south and north sides of the terminal building with open parking on the south side (220,000 square meters) and the parking structure on the north side (460,000 square meters) offer a joint capacity of more than 4,800 vehicles.
A wide-ranging transportation network from
GuangZhou City includes an airport express rail service which will link-up with the current four lines of the
GuangZhou subway to form an extensive transportation system which will speed passengers from north subway terminus on the ground floor within the main terminal building. Passengers in Guangzhou, even those in southern end of Panyu District will be able to take the subway directly to the terminal building.
In addition to managing 25 Million passengers each year, the new airport's current construction is designed to move more than 1 Million tons of cargo annually through 2010. North of the terminal building, an additional second passenger terminal, apron and linking bridges is planned for the new airport's second phase as the third runway is planned for the future.
