Beijing airport follows London model

With a new airport opening in 2019, Beijing will join a small list of cities with two major international airports.

An interior shot of Beijing's current Capital airport. [Photo: Baidu]

There's a saying in aviation, that 'there's only one London.'

It refers to the fact that London is unique in having a massive population surrounded by international airports to the North (Luton, Stansted), East (City, Southend), South (Gatwick) and West (Heathrow).

Although London is a bit of an extreme example in having so many nearby international airports, there's actually a surprisingly small number of cities around the world with even two - such as Paris, Shanghai and Tokyo.

Soon, Beijing will join the list. Its new airport (Beijing Daxing International) is being constructed 29 miles south of the city centre, with the existing Capital International 20 miles to the North.

We're pleased to report that whilst, in policy terms, Beijing will follow the 'London model' of having more than one international airport, in reality, Daxing International will offer a much more modern and pleasant passenger experience. (Despite a lot of recent renovation work, some of London's airports receive poor passenger ratings).

With an estimated price tag of $13 billion, the airport will truly become one of the world's global mega hubs.

Building work began in late December of 2014, with work on the main terminal having now begun, and completion expected in 2019.