CITY FOCUS | BEIJING
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Daxing International Airport . Located to the south of the city and , thanks to its distinctive multi-armed design , nicknamed “ starfish ”, it boasts the world ’ s largest single terminal building , coming in at over 1mn sqm . In most cities , a project on such a scale would be tied up in years of bureaucracy . Daxing International Airport , however , was built in just five years at a cost of 120bn RMB ($ 25bn ).
Initially serving fewer passengers than its older relative , the plan is for Daxing to gradually ramp up its capacity . 45mn passengers are expected to pass through by 2021 , 72mn by 2025 , and 100mn by 2040 . At the time of its opening , Vice Premier Han Zheng was quoted in the South China Morning Post as saying : “[ Chinese Premier ] Xi Jinping attaches particular importance to and has personally encouraged the development of Daxing International Airport , a major engineering project that is symbolic of the capital . It will significantly improve the global competitiveness of national airlines , promote our country ’ s continued opening up to the wider world , and
Photo © N509FZ
FEBRUARY 2020