City airports plan for epidemic prevention, further expansion

Ti Gong

Shanghai's Pudong and Hongqiao airports have imposed strict prevention measures against the coronavirus, while making blueprint for the next five years.

The number of daily passengers at the two airports is now around 50,000, up from only 20,000 after the outbreak of the epidemic when many flights were cancelled.

Both airports have been promoting "non-contact" and "one-meter-away" services to inbound and outbound passengers.

About 40 temperature checkpoints, equipped with infrared ray detectors, have been set up in the terminal buildings, VIP channels and business jet terminals at both airports.

Marks to remind keeping a one-meter intervals from others have been printed across the terminal buildings at both airports. The explosion-proof checkpoints at the entrances to the terminal buildings, for instance, have been redesigned to allow waiting passengers to keep a meter away from others.

The check-in sections, boarding areas and luggage carousels also have posters to remind passengers to keep at least a meter away from others.

Buffer zones have been newly set up at temperature checkpoints to prevent too many people waiting in the areas.

As operations return to normal, the airports have started making plans to improve the punctuality of flights.

Meanwhile, the Shanghai Airport Authority has announced a super-size civil aviation industry zone near Pudong International Airport.

The airport authority has been working together with the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China and Lingang Group to develop the zone.

Focused on China's domestically developed large aircraft, the zone is planned on the south of Pudong airport, covering over 20 square kilometers with over 100 billion yuan (US$14.4 billion) of industry, according to the airport authority.

The airport also started preparations for its fourth-phase expansion.

Ti Gong