The much-anticipated Beijing Daxing International Airport (PKX) has begun operations today (September 25) following an opening ceremony.
Seven Chinese airlines launched their inaugural flights from the new airport in the afternoon, including Air China (PKX-Chengdu/CTU), China Eastern (PKX-Shanghai Pudong/PVG), China Southern (PKX-Guangzhou/CAN), China United Airlines (PKX-Yan’an/ENY), Beijing Capital Airlines (PKX-Hangzhou/HGH), Xiamen Air (PKX-Xiamen/XMN) and Hebei Airlines (PKX-Fuzhou/FOC).
Beijing Daxing International Airport is the largest integrated comprehensive transportation hub in the world, which began constructions in 2015.
The new Daxing Airport now has one large terminal, with 268 aircraft parking bays and a total of four runways, “three vertical (north-south) and one horizontal (west-east)”. It aims to reach a total passenger capacity of 45 million by 2022, and this figure is projected to further increase to 72 million by 2025, and to even reach 100 million in the long term.
More airlines will start operating at the new Daxing Airport during the winter season on or after October 27 this year, including Juneyao Airlines and a few foreign airlines (please refer to the table below).
By then, there will be 16 airlines operating a total of 116 routes from the new airport, including 101 domestic routes and 15 international routes, to 112 destinations at home and abroad, including 97 domestic and 15 overseas destinations, according to Civil Aviation Resource Net of China.
Below is a list of foreign (non-Chinese) airlines that will start operating at the new Daxing Airport:
| Airlines | Destination | Frequency | Launch date |
| British Airways | London Heathrow | Daily | October 27, 2019 |
| Royal Brunei Airlines | Bandar Seri Begawan | Four times weekly; and daily from January 14, 2020 | October 27, 2019 |
| Himalaya Airlines | Kathmandu | Daily | October 27, 2019 |
| LOT Polish | Warsaw | Four times weekly | October 28, 2019 |
| Finnair | Helsinki | Thrice weekly | November 3, 2019 |
| Malaysia Airlines | Kuala Lumpur | 10 times weekly | January 1, 2020 |
| Royal Air Maroc | Casablanca | Thrice weekly | January 16, 2020 |
Four Chinese airlines, including China Eastern, China Southern, China United Airlines and Beijing Capital Airlines, won approval earlier this month from the Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) for new international routes to be launched in the future from the new airport.
Passengers using the new Daxing Airport can expect a self-service and paperless travel experience via the self-check-in and automatic bag-drop kiosks and facial recognition, as well as radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology for luggage tracking.
The new airport, situated around 50km to the south of Beijing city centre on the Chinese capital’s traditional north-south central axis, will be accessible via new subway line Daxing Airport Express, high-speed rail, inter-city rail, and highway.
