China opens Tibet''s 2nd largest airport terminal close to Arunachal

Beijing, March 6

Tibet’s second largest terminal began operations on Monday, officials said. 

The new terminal, the sixth to open in Tibet, is located at Nyingchi Mainling Airport, close to the India border. It covers an area of 10,300 square metres and will be able to handle 750,000 passengers and 3,000 tonnes of cargo throughput annually by 2020, Xinhua news agency reported.

The airport is located close to the disputed Arunachal Pradesh border.

China's extensive development road, rail and air infrastructure in Tibet has sparked concerns in India because of possible military advantage.

India has also initiated border infrastructure development in recent years.

The Nyingchi airport will open new air routes to Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi province, resume routes to Beijing and increase more round trip flights to Lhasa, Guangzhou, Kunming, Chongqing and Shenzhen after the new terminal comes into service, said Liu Wei, deputy director of Civil Aviation Administration of China in Tibet.

The airport has seen year-on-year increases in passenger flow since it was put into service in 2006. Passenger volume hit 390,000 in 2016, bringing the total passenger numbers to two million in the past years, Liu said, adding that the new terminal will effectively alleviate pressure brought by the growing number of passengers.

Nyingchi is located in southeast Tibet at an average elevation of 2,950 meters above sea level. The city has attracted more visitors in the recent years due to tourist attractions such as its peach blossom festival, the report said. — PTI/ IANS