Lanzhou_Zhongchuan_International_Airport

Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport

Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport

Airport serving Lanzhou, Gansu, China


Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport (IATA: LHW, ICAO: ZLLL) is an international airport serving Lanzhou, the capital of Northwest China’s Gansu province. It is located 71 kilometres (44 mi) northwest of downtown Lanzhou. It was opened in 1970[1] and serves as a major air hub for the province of Gansu and western China. There are eight gates served by aerobridges in the terminal. A new larger (61,000 m2) Terminal 2 is located to the South, adjacent to the existing terminal.[2] The new terminal adds nine aerobridges.

Quick Facts Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport 兰州中川国际机场, Summary ...
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Lanzhou Airport is a focus city for China Eastern Airlines and Hainan Airlines. Passenger traffic at Lanzhou Airport in 2014 was 6.58 million, with 10 million passengers per year projected for 2020.[3]

History

Lanzhou's first airport, Gongxingdun Airport, was located just 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the city centre. By 1957, the Civil Aviation Administration of China decided that Gongxingun Airport's location was too restrictive for the aviation needs of Lanzhou and designated a new site near Zhongchuan town. Due to the geography of Lanzhou, this closest suitable location is 71 km (44 mi) from downtown Lanzhou, which makes it the Chinese airport furthest from the center of the city it serves.[4]

In 1968 construction was started on Lanzhou airport and on July 26, 1970, the maiden flight took place with the first aircraft landing of an Ilyushin Il-14. On June 15, 1997, an expansion project was officially started.[5]

In 2010, Lanzhou airport's passenger throughput exceeded 3 million people a year.[6] and the second expansion project started.[5] Lanzhou Airport Terminal 2 officially started construction in 2010, after preliminary design approval and with an investment budget of 1.488 billion yuan.[7] In 2013, Lanzhou airport's passenger throughput exceeded 5 million passengers per annum, increasing the official Lanzhou airport ranking among the major airports within China.[8] Terminal 2 opened in 2015[7] and later that year the Lanzhou–Zhongchuan Airport intercity railway between the airport and Lanzhou's urban area opened.

The third expansion phase started in 2019. At a cost of 31.69 billion Yuan, a new Terminal 3 will be built, two new 4000 meter long runways and facilities will be expanded. Terminal 3 will be four times larger than the current combined terminal floor area.[9][10] The entirety of adjacent namesake Zhongchuan town and several villages, totaling 10.7 square kilometres (4.1 sq mi), were demolished to make way for the expansion, and residents were relocated to Lanzhou and Lanzhou New Area.[11][12][13]

Terminal complex

While nominally two terminals, they are connected airside by a lengthy walkway and operate as a single building. Airlines operating from one terminal may use gates at the other.

Terminal 1

Shaped like the letter T, this terminal consisted of eight airbridges. The original terminal had a single airside level for arrivals and departures. Arrivals were segregated by a glass screen from departing passengers. Check-in was handled on the upper level, while the lower level housed the baggage hall.

With the opening of Terminal 2, this terminal's landside facilities have been shut down for refurbishment and parts of the terminal will be mothballed until future growth warrants the reopening of these facilities. Airside lounges, gates and shops remain in use.

Terminal 2

Designed and shaped to resemble the wing of flying geese, at 61,000m2, this terminal greatly increased the operational space at Lanzhou Airport. It added an extra two piers to the existing terminal. It houses 30 extra check-in desks, 12 passenger gates, 9 airbridges and separate levels for arriving and departing passengers. The new terminal was opened for travellers in February 2015.[3]

Terminal 3

Terminal 3 construction preparations started in 2019. It will have a floor area of 400,000 square metres (4,300,000 sq ft), dwarfing T1 and T2.[10] The terminal will have 87 gates.[9]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

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Cargo

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Ground transportation connections

Rail

Zhongchuan Airport Railway Station

The Lanzhou–Zhongchuan Airport intercity railway between the airport and the city started operation on 2015-09-30.[71] It provides fast train services between the Zhongchuan Airport railway station and the new major transportation hub at Lanzhou West railway station then terminates at the older Lanzhou railway station.

Road

Shuttle bus

There are three Airport Express Shuttle Bus services available from the airport. All routes cost 30RMB.

  • Line 1 runs to the Lanzhou Eastern Hotel, Tianshui Middle Road, opposite Lanzhou University western gate. The return service leaves from opposite the JJ Sun Hotel (next to CAAC Ticket Office), Donggang West Road. Travel time is about one hour, due to the distant nature of airport from the city centre. This is the closest service to Lanzhou Railway Station.
  • Line 2 runs to Golden Lily Hotel, Xijin East Road, via Taohai Market, Anning West Road. This is the closest service to Lanzhou West Railway Station.
  • Line 3 runs to Qingshuiqiao in western Lanzhou.
Taxi

Taxi service is relatively expensive due to the long distance to the airport, about 150RMB. Many taxis will be reluctant to use their meter and demand a flat 200RMB fare to downtown Lanzhou despite being illegal to do so. Overall there is little time travel advantage over using the Airport Express bus.

Departure Hall of Lanzhou Airport Terminal 1
Existing terminal as seen from the south.
New terminal at Lanzhou Airport under construction to the immediate south of the existing terminal.

See also


References

  1. 从"晴通雨阻"到"一日千里" (in Chinese (China)).
  2. ·甘肃日报 数字报刊平台 (in Chinese (China)). Archived from the original on 2015-06-30. Retrieved 2015-06-27.
  3. Li, Shixiong (李世雄); Ye, Zhangquan (冶张全) (2019-07-24). 兰州中川机场三期扩建工程项目前期工作全力推进 (in Chinese (China)). Carnoc. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  4. 兰州中川国际机场三期扩建项目及周边环境整治工作全面展开. Lanzhou Post (in Chinese (China)). Gansu TV. 2018-03-17. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  5. Ren, Lei (任磊) (2018-03-16). 兰州新区中川国际机场三期扩建土地征收及周边环境整治工作推进纪实 (in Chinese (China)). Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  6. Wang, Xiao (王霄) (2018-05-14). 兰州新区机场三期扩建工程推进 中川镇1.6万亩拆迁住户何去何从. lzfcs.com (in Chinese (China)). Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  7. "China Eastern mid-April 2024 Hong Kong Network Additions". AeroRoutes. 15 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  8. 东航冬春换季新增多条航班 (in Chinese (China)). Carnoc.
  9. 东方航空夏秋换季时 更多航线伴您行. WeChat (in Chinese (China)). China Eastern Dalian sales. 2018-02-26. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  10. Xu, Han (许晗) (2019-03-20). 3月31日起东航新增兰州直飞珠海烟台航班. Lanzhou Evening Post (in Chinese (China)). Gansu Daily. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  11. "最新航班时刻表来啦!". Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  12. 临沂机场新增至柬埔寨、越南两条国际航线. bandao.cn (in Chinese (China)). 2019-04-01. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  13. "陇南机场冬春航季全新起航". Retrieved January 23, 2023.
  14. "春秋航空新开多条国内航线". Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  15. {{Cite web |title=北海机场2023冬航季航班计划来啦! |url=https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/HLyPrgn4ZRsoiPpMNtitSw |access-date=11 December 2023
  16. Song, Feifei (宋菲菲) (2019-04-01). 敦煌机场3条新航线通航 (in Chinese (China)). Gansu Daily. Retrieved 2020-01-14.
  17. "Urumqi Air NW23 Southeast Asia Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  18. Haonan, Liu. "Seamless transfer to Zhongchuan airport". China.org.cn. Retrieved 17 December 2015.

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