The passenger throughput of Guangyuan Panlong Airport is expected to increase to 500,000 this year; and within three years, the number of cities accessible from the airport will exceed 20, according to the airport's winter seasonal product promotion conference held on Nov 9.

Guangyuan Panlong Airport holds a winter seasonal product promotion conference on Nov 9. [Photo/share.gyxww.cn]

Since the beginning of this year, Panlong Airport in Guangyuan, Sichuan province, has successively opened new routes to the cities of Lhasa, Hefei, and Fuzhou. It has also resumed flights to Nanjing, Xichang, and Lijiang, and increased the frequency of flights to Shenzhen, gradually forming a network connecting east to west and north to south.

"This winter season, we have planned 150 weekly flights, which is a 25 percent increase compared to the summer season. As of now, the passenger throughput has reached 470,000, and it is expected to come up to 500,000 by the end of the year." Li Jianping, general manager of Panlong Airport Branch of Sichuan Airport Group Co, said during the conference.

Li added that Sichuan Airport Group Co has already signed an investment agreement with Guangyuan on airport expansion and construction.

In the following three years, Panlong Airport will open new routes to Haikou, Changsha, Wuhan, and other cities. An airport featuring safety, humanity, wisdom, and greenness that can handle an annual passenger throughput of 2 million people will be established.