International flights open at Beijing Daxing International Airport

The first international flight from Beijing's new Daxing International Airport took off for Fukuoka, Japan on Sunday morning, thepaper.cn reported.

China Eastern Airlines' Flight MU535 marked the beginning of the 2019-2020 winter-spring season at China’s new transport hub. Eight other flights are scheduled to depart from the Daxing airport and six are scheduled to arrive on the first day of the new season, according to China Central Television.

China Eastern Airlines is one of 15 companies currently operating at the new airport.

Authorities say 66 airline companies have applied to operate at the airport. Among them, 20 are domestic airlines and 46 from abroad. The airport will operate 116 routes connecting to 112 destinations globally around the end of this year, Xinhua reported.

An aerial view of the Beijing Daxing International Airport under construction on January 4, 2019. [File Photo: IC]

The airport is working with customs to make security checks easier and more efficient. Passengers on international flights don't need to have their carry-on luggage checked again after they go through the security gate, according to Zhang Bo at customs.

Passengers on China Airlines Flight CA757 to Bangkok, Thailand were the first to benefit from the new security process. Check-in for the 7:50AM flight began at 4:50AM and all passengers successfully completed customs clearance.

"We are going to Thailand for vacation," said a passenger surnamed Zhang who's traveling with his family. "We specifically chose a flight that departs from the Daxing airport to check it out. This is our first time flying from here and we're all excited. The facilities are nice and there was no fuss at customs at all," Zhang said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the official opening of the Beijing Daxing International Airport on September 25. China Southern Airlines launched the Guangzhou-bound maiden flight on the same day.

Located 46 km south of downtown Beijing, the new aviation hub is shaped like a phoenix spreading its wings. Its passenger and cargo throughput are expected to reach 72 million and 2 million tonnes respectively by 2025, with 620,000 flight takeoffs and landings.

The Daxing airport is expected to take pressure off the capital airport, which has exceeded its maximum capacity with over 100 million passengers last year.