Civil airport for ethnic minority in N.China to be constructed

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 ◆ Civil airport for ethnic minority in N.China to be constructed

It is to break ground later this year in Wuhai of north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to help boost the local economy.

The Wuhai airport is expected to fill the air transport vacuum in the western part of the region, upgrade local business environment and improve local people's living standards, officials from China's Civil Aviation Administration said Monday.

Covering a land area of 155.4 hectares and with a runway 2,300 meters long and 45 meters wide, the airport will be able to handle 70,000 passengers annually by 2010 and the rush hour traffic volume could hit 100 people per hour.

The budget of more than 145.24 million yuan (about 14.5 million US dollars) will pay for construction of facilities for electricity, fuel, heating, fire control, water supply and drainage.

The airport should be ready for trial operation in two years, the aviation officials said.

In 1993, Wuhai and six other ethnic localities were selected by the state as pilot areas for reform and opening-up projects.(xinhua)