Top airports in China!

The first cargo flight took place on November 7, 1910, in the United States, between Dayton and Columbus, Ohio. Pilot Philip Erwin Parmelia piloted a Wright Model B plane 65 miles (105 km) with 200-pound silk packages to open a store.

In that year, a newspaper quoted that the cargo flight covered Dayton and Columbus’s distance in 66 minutes, but that flight was officially recorded at 57 minutes, which was an excellent record in that time!

Therefore, air freight became ubiquitous worldwide, and many people used this flexible way to transport their packages!

Airports are an important place for air freight. After being the most preferred destination by many businessmen and businesswomen, many countries like China tried to facilitate them to offer the best services to their passengers.

This article aims to talk about top airports in China. In the end, you will have enough information in this field!

The history of air cargo 

Before introducing top airports in China, it is better to have a quick look at the history of air cargo farming. As mentioned earlier, the first air cargo was in 1910 in America.

The world’s first official airmail flight also took place on February 18, 1911, at a major exhibition in Agar and Owood provinces in British India. The aviation exhibition organizer, Walter Wingham, obtained a flight permit from the Gendarmerie General in India to provide airmail services to produce advertisements for the exhibition and raise money for charity.

This was the first airmail flight by Henry Pique to fly 6,500 letters in 13 kilometers (8.1 miles) from Allahabad to Naini, the nearest Mumbai-Calcutta line station. On this occasion, the aircraft was a “Humber-Sommer” wireless aircraft with a power of about 37 KW, and it delivered letters by air within 30 minutes.

In Britain, the first airmail service was on September 9, 1911, in the English suburbs of Handon and the Postmaster-General office in Windsor-Berkshire. This was part of the King George V’s Celebration Ceremony, at the suggestion of Sir Walter Wingham, who oversaw the successful airline flight test in India. The service was launched in less than a month and delivered 35 packages with 16 flights.

In the early 1920s, aviation increased rapidly as employers and industry owners realized that aircraft could carry valuable, low-volume cargo faster than trains and ships.

The first scheduled flight from London to Paris in 1919 had only one passenger, but it carried leather cargo for a shoe manufacturer and food for a restaurant in France.

Besides, the movie industry was one of the first customers for air freight. The original version of the movies was flown to copying centers and then sent for distribution in European cinemas!

All in all, air freight has become one of the most significant ways of transporting, and imagining a world without flights is impossible in this century!

Top airports in China 

An authoritative research consultant in the aviation industry recently published the top 100 airports in the world. The Global Airport Awards are the most prestigious awards for the airport industry, and airline customers worldwide have created this list over several months.

Some Chinese airports are on the list of awards, and they are considered top airports in China. Hong Kong International Airport, Beijing Capital International Airport, and Taiwan are all airports that passengers were satisfied with!

In the following, we mentioned the top airports in China.

Beijing International Airport

Beijing International Airport (PEK) is the busiest airport in Asia, with more than 70 airlines flying to more than 200 cities globally. Passengers from 51 countries can enjoy 72 hours of visa-free travel by purchasing a plane ticket to China. The airport includes three terminals.

Terminal 1 is used for flights inside China, while Terminal 2 is used primarily for Southern China Airlines, Eastern China Airlines, SkyTeam members, and other domestic and international flights.

Terminal 3 is considered the newest airport, serves Air China, Star Alliance, Oneworld, and other domestic and international flights.

When you are in a city and want to use air freight to transport your goods, it is essential to pay attention to this matter that there are two international airports in some cities like Beijing.

Then, it is important to know your goods are transported from which airport. Daxing International Airport (PKX) was opened in 2019, and most flights are still operated from PEK. However, PKX will be one of the most significant airports in China shortly. 

Shanghai Pudong International Airport 

Shanghai Pudong International Airport is considered one of the top airports in China. It is located 30 km from Shanghai, and it is one of the three largest airports in China. Some significant flights operate from this airport are:

• East China Airlines
• Shanghai Airlines
• South China Airlines

It is the largest international hub for China Air, with over 60 domestic destinations and 70 international destinations and flight zones; it consists of two terminals: “Terminal 1” and “Terminal 2”.

Free WiFi is offered as a service in Shanghai Pudong International Airport, but a Chinese mobile phone number is required. Because you need a code that is sent via SMS, don’t worry! If you don’t have a Chinese phone number, there are machines located airside that will print an access code for you. Boingo Wireless customers can also connect via hot spots at the airport.

Since January 2013, China has been offering 72-hour visa-free travel to 45 countries by purchasing airline tickets. The airport has an airport shuttle service by bus, taxi, and train between Pudong Airport and downtown Shanghai.

As I mentioned, sometimes there are two airports in one city. It is right about Shanghai. The second airport in this city is on the list of top airports in China.

Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport

Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, located 13 km from Shanghai city, is Shanghai Main Airport and is the hub of East China Airlines, Shanghai Airlines, Juneyao Airlines, and Spring Airlines. Since January 2013, the airport has been offering 72-hour visa-free travel to 45 countries by purchasing airline tickets; and equipped with two terminals: “Terminal 1” and “Terminal 2”.

 Spring Airlines and flights to Japan, South Korea are operated in Terminal 1; and Terminal 2 is used for most airlines. The transfer between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 takes about 20 minutes.

This question may arise for you that which airport in Shanghai is closer to the city?! Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport is closer to the town than Shanghai Pudong International Airport. Interestingly, both airports are categorized as the top airports in China!

Chengdu International Airport

Chengdu International Airport, located 16 km southwest of Chengdu, is the busiest aviation airport in western China, and it is one of the top airports in China. Sichuan Airlines and Chengdu Airlines, Chengdu Eastern Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Lucky Airlines, and Tibet Airlines are operated at this airport. There are a total of 241 routes, of which 78 are international routes.

Since September 2013, the airport has issued free visas to 45 countries for 72 hours by purchasing plane tickets to China. It is equipped with two terminals: Terminal 1 and Terminal 2.

• Terminal 1 is used for Sichuan Airlines, international flights, and flights to Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan
• Terminal 2 is used for domestic airlines except for Sichuan Airlines.

Hong Kong International Airport

Hong Kong International Airport, located on the island of Chek Lap Kok in Hong Kong, is also known as Chek Lap Kok Airport. It is on the list of top airports in China. This airport is the central hub for:

• Cathay Pacific
• Dragon Air
• Hong Kong Airlines
• Hong Kong Express Airways China Airlines
• East and South China Airlines

The airport has flights to about 180 destinations, including 47 on the mainland, and it is connected to more than 100 airlines by about 1,100 daily flights.

Xian Xianyang International Airport

Xian Xianyang International Airport is the largest airport in northwest China, and it is the hub of East China Airlines, Southern China Airlines, Joy Air, and Hainan Airlines. The airport flies to 68 domestic cities with 155 airlines and 11 international cities with ten airlines. It is considered as one of the top airports in China.

Within 2.5 hours, passengers can fly to Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Chongqing, Guilin, Wuhan, Lanzhou, Xinjiang, Zhangzhou, and other cities. The flight from Xian to Lhasa takes about 3.5 hours. As of June 1, 2014, it issued free 72-hour visas to 51 countries.

Concluding remarks

In this article, we tried to talk about top international airports in China and familiarize them with the general information about each of them.

If you want to use one of these top airports in China, it is better to go to the official website and collect more specific information. If you use a door to door shipping service, the freight forwarder will do all actions for you, and there is no need to do anything else!

DDPCH

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