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Beijing Capital International Airport

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Beijing Capital International Airport

北京首都国际机场

Běijīng Shǒudoū Guójì Jīcháng
Beijing Capital Departure Hall
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorCivil Aviation Administration of China
ServesBeijing
LocationChaoyang District, Beijing
Elevation AMSL116 ft / 35 m
Coordinates40°04′48″N 116°35′04″E / 40.08000°N 116.58444°E / 40.08000; 116.58444
Websitewww.bcia.com.cn
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
18L/36R 3,800 12,468 Asphalt
18R/36L 3,200 10,499 Asphalt
01/19 3,800 12,468 Asphalt
Statistics (2006)
Passengers48,501,102
Million tonnes of cargo1,028,908
Aircraft movements376,340

Beijing Capital International Airport (SEHK: 694),(simplified Chinese: 北京首都国际机场; traditional Chinese: 北京首都國際機場; pinyin: Běijīng Shǒudū Guójì Jīcháng) (IATA: PEK, ICAO: ZBAA) is the main international airport that serves the capital city of Beijing, People's Republic of China. The IATA Airport Code is PEK, reflecting Beijing's former Romanization Peking. The code BJS is also frequently used, reflecting the current pinyin spelling of Beijing and including all airports in the Beijing metropolitan area; currently, Beijing Capital (PEK) is the only civil aviation airport that falls under BJS. Entering either code will get a passenger to the same airport.

Beijing Capital International Airport is located around 20 km to the northeast of Beijing city center. Although many consider it to lie in Shunyi District, it is, in fact, an exclave of Chaoyang District, Beijing.

The airport is the sole hub of operations of Air China. Air China flies to around 120 destinations (excluding cargo), which currently flies to the most destinations from its own hub. It is also a hub for Hainan Airlines and China Southern Airlines. The airport expansion is largely funded by a 500-million-euro (USD 625 million) loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB). The loan is the largest ever granted by the EIB in Asia; the agreement was signed during the eighth China-EU Summit held in September 2005.[citation needed]

Beijing Capital is today the busiest airport in the People's Republic of China, having registered double-digit growth annually since the SARS crisis of 2003. In 2004, it became the busiest airport in Asia by aircraft movements, overtaking Tokyo International Airport (Haneda). In terms of passengers, Beijing was the second-busiest airport in Asia and ninth-busiest worldwide in 2006. In 2006, it served 48,501,102 passengers, moved 1,028,908 million tonnes of cargo and had 376,340 aircraft movements.[1] In 2006, BCIA is the 30th busiest airport in terms of traffic movements and the only airport in the Asia/Pacific region to appear in the top 30. It is also the 20th busiest airport in terms of cargo traffic. It currently operates around 1100 flights a day, and is expected to rise to 1500-1600 at the Olympics in 2008. [1]

History

Beijing Capital International Airport, showing the new (taller) and old (lower) air traffic control towers, Terminal 1 (front) and Terminal 2 (the blue structure behind Terminal 1)

Beijing Airport was opened on March 2, 1958, and was the first in the People's Republic of China.[citation needed] The airport consisted of one small terminal building, which still stands to this day, apparently for the use of VIPs and charter flights. On January 1, 1980, a newer, larger building -- green in colour -- opened, with docks for 10–12 airplanes. The terminal was larger than the 1950s one, but by the mid 1995s it was overwhelmed with people and was tested well over the limit. The terminal was then closed for renovation after the opening of Terminal 2.

In late 1999, to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of the PRC, the airport was expanded again, reaching its current state in this expansion. This new terminal opened on November 1, and was named Terminal 2. September 20, 2004, saw the opening of a new Terminal 1 for a few airlines, including China Southern Airlines domestic and international flights from Beijing. Other airlines' domestic and international flights still operate in Terminal 2.

Another, even more ambitious expansion, is in the works, due for completion in time for the 2008 Olympics. This includes a 3rd runway and another terminal for Beijing airport, and a rail link to the city centre. It will become one of the largest airports in the world in terms of land size.

On January 29, 2005, direct flights between Mainland China and Taiwan via the areas over Hong Kong and Macao took place after 56 years, mainly to allow families and relatives on the two sides of the strait to get together for Chinese New Year. Flying to Taiwan were planes from Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. This became known as a part of the Three Links.

As China has begun to emerge as a player in global economics and foreign policy, the rights to fly to the country in southeast Asia has become a top priority for several airlines in the world, especially those in the United States.

In recent years, the United States' Department of Transportation, in coordination with China's Civil Aviation Administration, have approved several U.S. carriers to fly select routes between the countries. The coordination has been the work of several bilateral civilian air agreements, including the most recent one signed in 2004 that paved the way for the number of daily flights between China and the United States to increase by five-fold.[2]

The third runway of BCIA opened on October 29, 2007 to relieve the congestion of flights on the other two runways. [2]

Due to the rapid growth of passenger and traffic movements and the limited space for expansion, and since 10,000 people had seen their homes destroyed for Terminal 3 and the new metro line, the Airport authority is to plan on a new Airport in Beijing, to begin construction in 2010 and finish at 2015, however, it will not close Beijing Capital International Airport. [3] From 2000 Beijing Capital International Airport handled 21.7 million passengers, ranking 42nd in the world and in 2006, it handled 48.5 million passengers, jumping from 42nd place to 9th place in only 6 years.

Airlines and destinations

Landing rights at the airport are much-coveted, and must be specifically negotiated. After slots were given to Federal Express, Continental Airlines began non-stop flights between Newark and Beijing on June 15, 2005. On September 25, 2007, American Airlines and US Airways were awarded nonstop flights to Beijing from Chicago-O'Hare and Philadelphia, respectively, to begin in March of 2009. This became US Airways' first destination in Asia.

The airport currently has two terminals. Terminal 1 serves mainly for China Southern Airlines and a few other airlines, Terminal 2 serves all remaining Chinese airlines and all international flights (including Hong Kong and Macau). A third terminal is currently under construction and it is expected to be built by 2007.

The top long-haul International destinations from Beijing are Frankfurt, London-Heathrow, Los Angeles, New York, Paris-CDG, San Francisco and Vancouver. Other destinations becoming popular include Chicargo, Sydney, Toronto and Washington.

Terminal 1

Terminal 1, which was green in colour, first opened on January 1, 1980. After the opening of Terminal 2, Terminal 1 was then closed and went through renovation. Terminal 1 then reopened on September 20, 2004, replacing the original 1980s terminal building. This was the airport's only terminal until 1999. It is now used mostly for China Southern Airlines' domestic and select international flights to and from Beijing.

  • China Southern Airlines (Beihai, Changchun, Changsha, Changzhi, Chengdu, Dalian, Guangzhou, Guilin, Guiyang, Haikou, Hangzhou, Harbin, Kunming, Liuzhou, Nanchong, Nanjing, Nanning, Nanyang, Ningbo, Sanya, Shanghai-Hongqiao, Shantou, Shenzhen, Shenyang, Tongren, Urumqi, Wuhan, Xi'an, Xining, Yanji, Yiwu, Zhangjiajie, Zhanjiang, Zhengzhou, Zhijiang, Zhuhai)
  • Chongqing Airlines (Chongqing)
  • Xiamen Airlines (Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Wuyishan, Xiamen, Zhoushan)

Terminal 2

The departure hall of Beijing Capital International Airport Terminal 2
Beijing Capital International Airport - Terminal 2 Domestic & International Departure Hall Drop Off Entrance
Beijing Capital International Airport - Terminal 2 International Departure Waiting Hall
Beijing Capital International Airport - Terminal 2 Arrival Luggage Pick Up Hall
Airport terminal architecture in Beijing Airport's Terminal 2 (April 2006 image)

Terminal 2 opened on November 1, 1999, a month following the 50th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. This terminal was used to replace Terminal 1 while undergoing renovation, cramping all airlines into this terminal. This terminal now contains all other airlines' domestic and international flights. It may eventually contain only Hong Kong, Macau, and international flights.

  • Aeroflot (Moscow-Sheremetyevo, Novosibirsk)[4]
  • Aerolineas Argentinas (Buenos Aires-Ezeiza, Madrid) [begins July 2008] [3]
  • Aerosvit Airlines (Kiev-Boryspil)
  • Air Algérie (Algiers) [begins by end 2007]
  • Air Astana (Almaty)
  • Air Berlin (Düsseldorf) [begins May 2, 2008]
  • Air Canada (Toronto-Pearson, Vancouver)
  • Air China
    • Domestic: (Baotou, Changchun, Changde, Changsha, Changzhou, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Daxian, Datong, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Guilin, Guiyang, Haikou, Hailar, Hangzhou, Harbin, Hefei, Hohhot, Jinggangshan, Kunming, Lanzhou, Lhasa, Mianyang, Nanchang, Nanjing, Nanning, Nantong, Ningbo, Ordos, Qingdao, Sanya, Shanghai-Hongqiao, Shanghai-Pudong, Shantou, Shenyang, Shenzhen, Taiyuan, Tongliao, Urumqi, Weihai, Wenzhou, Wuhan, Xiamen, Xi'an, Xiangfan, Xilinhot, Xining, Xuzhou, Yancheng, Yanji, Yantai, Yinchuan, Yuncheng, Zhangjiajie, Zhengzhou, Zhuhai)
    • International: (Anchorage, Athens, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Berlin-Tegel [begins March 2008][4], Busan, Copenhagen, Daegu, Delhi, Dubai, Dusseldorf [begins October 2009], Frankfurt, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Istanbul-Atatürk [begins October 2008], Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, London-Heathrow, Los Angeles, Madrid, Malé [seasonal], Manchester [begins March 2009], Melbourne, Milan-Malpensa [begins October 2009], Moscow-Sheremetyevo,[4] Munich, Nagoya-Centrair, New York-JFK, Osaka-Kansai, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Pyongyang [begins January 2, 2008], Rome-Fiumicino, Saipan [seasonal], San Francisco, São Paulo-Guarulhos, Sapporo-Chitose, Sendai, Seoul-Incheon, Singapore, Stockholm-Arlanda, St. Petersburg, Sydney, Toronto-Pearson [begins March 2009], Tokyo-Narita, Ulaanbaatar, Vancouver, Vienna [begins October 2009], Warsaw [begins October 2008], Washington-Dulles [begins March 2009], Yangon, Zurich [begins March 2009])

Terminal 3

Currently under construction, due to open in March 2008.

Cargo airlines

Terminals

Terminal 1 opened September 20, 2004 and handles China Southern (CZ) flights, and originally was planned to handle domestic traffic, excluding those to Hong Kong and Macau. It was converted from the 1980s structure and has been thoroughly remodelled. Terminal 1 is relatively small, with approximately ten boarding gates.

Terminal 2 formerly served domestic and international flights in one relatively compressed terminal. That stress is now being taken more and more by Terminal 1. Terminal 2 is far bigger than Terminal 1. It can easily handle twenty airplanes at docks connecting directly to the terminal building.

There is a passage linking the two terminals together; this is accessible at the public level (no passports needed).

There is a limited selection of food and dining options at Terminal 2. There is only one restaurant in the international area of the terminal once passengers are past security, and the prices are several times higher than similar food downtown Beijing. A Japanese set meal is advertised on the official airport website as RMB 88[5], four-times higher than a similar offering downtown. By comparison, the domestic area of Terminal 2 has a number of dining options, all at more reasonable prices. Kentucky Fried Chicken and Starbucks have recently opened outlets in the airport in both Terminals 1 and 2, but they are only available before passengers go through check-in and security. When Terminal 2 was opened, it reached its current state, but in a few years later, it reached far over the limit. The stress will be taken more and more by Terminal 3 when it is set to open in 2008.

Terminal 3

Terminal 3 is due to open for trial operation on February 29, 2008 and to be fully operational on March 26, 2008, when Air China and other Star Alliance members move in. It has been designed by the British-based architectural firm Foster and Partners, and is expected to be completed by early 2008. The budget of the expansion is US$3.5 billion.

Far grander in size and scale than the existing terminals. It will become the largest airport terminal building complex built in a single phase with 986,000 sq. meters in total floor area. It will feature a main passenger terminal(Terminal 3A), two satellite concourses(Terminal 3B and Terminal 3C) and five floors above ground and two underground.

System, Security and Luggage

A 300,000-sq.m transportation centre is located at T3’s front. Up to 7,000 car parking spaces will be available if the two-level underground parking lot is fully employed. The transportation centre will have three reserved lanes for different types of vehicles, airport buses, taxies and private vehicles, which will enable a smooth flow of passengers. People bound for T3 will exit their vehicles here and enter T3 via an aisle within five minutes. The transportation centre will also have a light-rail station on a line that begins at the Dongzhimen stop on the Beijing Subway in Central Beijing. Travel time from Dongzhimen to T3 will be about 18 minutes. User-friendly designs are widely used at T3.

There will be electrical outlets on either end of every row of seats in the terminal. There will be 243 elevators, escalators or moving foot paths; and every ordinary restroom is accompanied by a mothers’ room where diapers can be changed. There is also a room for travellers with disabilities.

One of Terminal 3 highlights is the US$240 million luggage-transfer system. Looking like an underground rollercoaster, the luggage system is equipped with yellow carts, each of whichhas a unique code, matching the bar code on every piece of luggage loaded on it, allowing easy and accurate tracking. More than 200 cameras will be used to strictly monitor activities in the luggage area; all blind spots will have been eliminated.

The luggage system can handle 19,200 pieces of luggage per hour. After luggage is checked in at any one of the 292 counters at Terminal 3A, they can be transferred at the speed of ten metres per second. Even for international routes, luggage can travel from T3A to T3B in five minutes. Arriving passengers should be able to begin retrieving their luggage within 4.5 minutes after airplanes are unloaded, greatly reducing passenger waiting times.

The system provides more security. Along with X-ray scanners, additional equipment was employed to conduct sophisticated checks such as explosive trace checks. Manual examinations can be used if a piece of luggage is found suspect. Passengers will be able to check in their luggage at the airport several hours or even a day before their flight. The airport will store them in its luggage system and then load them on the correct airplane.

The Look

A 98.3-metre monitoring tower stands at the southern end of T3, the highest building at the airport. The roof of T3 is red, the traditional Chinese colour for good luck. The terminal’s ceilings use white strips for decoration and to indicate directions. All the strips are southnorth oriented, so that people don’t get lost. Under the white strips, the basic colour of the ceiling is orange with light to dark tones indicating where a passenger is inside the building. It is light orange in the centre and deepens as it extends to the sides in T3B and is the other way round in T3A.

The roof of T3 has dozens of windows to let in daylight. Light angles can be adjusted to ensure adequate interior lighting. Many traditional Chinese elements will be employed in the terminal’s interior decoration, including a “Menhai,” a big copper vat used to store water for fighting fires in the Forbidden City, and the carvings imitating the famous Nine-Dragon Wall (Jiulongbi).

An indoor garden will be constructed in the T3B waiting area, in the style of imperial gardens such as the Summer Palace. In T3A, a tunnel landscape of an underground garden has been finished with plants on each side so that passengers can appreciate them inside the mini-train.

Facilities

The T3 food-service area is called a “global kitchen,” where 72 stores will provide food ranging from formal dishes to fast food, from Chinese to western, from bakery goods to ice cream. Airport officials have promised that people who buy products at the airport will see the same prices as in Central Beijing.

In addition to food and drink businesses, there will be a 12,600-sq.m domestic retail area, a 10,600-sq.m duty-free-store area and nearly 7,000-sq.m convenience service area, including banks, business centres, Internet services and more. At 45,200 sq.m, the commercial area will be twice the size of Beijing’s Lufthansa Shopping Centres.

Transportation between the three terminals

To get from Terminal 3A to 3B, Both domestic and international travellers will have to get boarding passes at T3A, but international passengers have to board from T3B. The two-kilometre trip between the two buildings is too long for walking, so the airport will have a mini-train that shuttles between the two. Passengers can take it for free and get from T3A to T3B in three minutes.

To help passengers that go to the wrong terminal, the airport will provide bus transportation between T3 and the old terminals for free from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. The buses set out every ten minutes from 8 a.m. to 8p.m., and every 20 minutes during other times. [6]

When completed, it will provide 66 more aerobridges or jetways--further complemented with remote parking bays which will bring the grand total of gates to 120 for the terminal alone. An additional runway is also projected to be constructed at that time. It will also have an extra capacity of 60 million people bringing the total to approximately 100 million passengers yearly. Upon completion, it is reported that passengers will be able to travel from the entrance of Terminal 3 to the farthest gate in less than 5 minutes. [7]

The future of BCIA

Air China, China Eastern and China Southern have recently cut capacity on the Beijing-Shanghai routes. This is because of overcrowding and to strengthen safety. The CAAC will also ban any start-up airlines until 2010 because of overcapacity and major constraints. However, the opening of the 3rd runway has strengthened the capacity of movements to approximately 500,000.

When Terminal 3 opens in March 2008, BCIA's terminal system will undergo major changes. As a main hub, Air China and Star Alliance members will all move to Terminal 3. China Eastern, China Southern and Skyteam members will move flights to Terminal 2. The smallest terminal, Terminal 1, will be used exclusively by Hainan Airlines. However, it is not exactly known where Oneworld and other international flights will move to. It may move to Terminal 2. Upon its opening, it will also become the largest airport in Asia in land size and one of the worlds largest in capacity and land size. Terminal 3 will become far larger than HKIA's and Suvarnabhumi's main passenger terminals, with a land area of approximately 986,000 square meters. It is also larger than London Heathrow Airports 5 terminals combined into one.

The airport will be expected to handle 64 million passengers in 2008, due to the high demand from the Olympics. It is expected to be in the top 5 airports in passenger traffic. The capacity of the airport will be an estimated 82 million when the new terminal opens, up from the current 35.5 million.[8]

A new airport is also to be planned to start construction in 2010, located approximately 40km South of downtown Beijing. Other prefered sites is to the south of the city near the Yongding River, which forms a boundary between Beijing and Hebei Province. There are also other plans to expand BCIA with a 4th runway joined to the 3rd runway to further increase traffic movements.

Rearranging Airlines in Spring 2008

Terminal 1 - Grand China Air (Hainan Airlines) domestic flights only

Terminal 2 - China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, SkyTeam, other domestic and international flights

  • Domestic:
China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Chongqing Airlines, Shandong Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Sichuan Airlines, Xiamen Airlines
  • International:
Aeroflot, Aerosvit, Air Algerie, Air Astana, Air Berlin, Air France, Air India, Air Koryo, Air Zimbabwe, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Continental Airlines, Dalavia, Domodedovo Airlines, Ethiad Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, Egyptair, Garuda Indonesia, Hainan Airlines (International only), Iran Air, KLM, Korean Air, KrasAir, Kyrgyzstan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, MIAT Mongolian Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Pakistan International Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Rossiya Airlines, SAT Airlines, SriLankan Airlines, Turkmenistan Airlines, Uzbekistan Airways, Varig, Vladivostok Air

Terminal 3 - Air China, Oneworld, Star Alliance, other domestic and international flights

Connections

The Airport Expressway Toll Gate at Xiaotianzhu (August 2004 image).

Connections by Road

The airport was remote when it was first built. Then, a solitary, narrow road served it from the area now known as Sanyuanqiao.

When China started opening up in the 1980s, the airport was full of activity and the tiny, narrow road that used to serve it was tested to the limit. As a result, in the early 1990s, a nearly 20 km stretch of toll expressway -- the Airport Expressway -- connecting downtown Beijing from the Northeastern 3rd Ring Road at Sanyuanqiao directly to the airport -- was opened.

By 2008, four expressways will link to the airport:

All of these expressways, except for the Airport Expressway are currently under construction as of early 2005.

Connections by Rail/Urban Public Transit

There are currently no light rail or underground routes serving the airport; however, the Airport Extension to the Beijing subway began construction in 2005 and is set to be completed on June 30, 2008, in time for the 2008 Olympics. Buses run from the airport to many parts of the city.

References

  1. ^ a b Template:PDFlink, Airports Council International, 7 March 2007
  2. ^ "United States Department of Transportation" (Press release). 2004-07-24. Retrieved 2007-08-08. {{cite press release}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/09/13/wchina113.xml
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Template:Ru icon Federal State Unitary Enterprise "State Air Traffic Management Corporation", Summer Air Traffic Schedule 25.03.2007 - 27.10.2007 (Airports - Russian international), 29 May 2007, p. 51-52
  5. ^ "Beijing Capital Airport - food options". Retrieved 2007-07-25.
  6. ^ http://www.btmbeijing.com/contents/en/business/2007-09/coverstory/termimal3
  7. ^ http://www.china.org.cn/english/travel/108260.htm
  8. ^ http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/olympics/2007-12/06/content_6302984.htm
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