The airport is located at Lujia Town of Jianyang, 51km (32mi) southeast of downtown Chengdu. The construction of this airport began in May 2016, and the airport opened in June 2021. Chengdu is the third city in China to have dual international airports after Beijing and Shanghai.[3]
In 2023, Chengdu Tianfu International Airport and Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport together handled a total of 538,000 flight takeoffs and landings, with a passenger volume of 74.924 million. The annual passenger volume makes Chengdu 3rd among the cities with airport systems in China.[4] Chengdu Tianfu International Airport alone ranks 39th between the busiest airports in the world, the fifth-busiest in China when ranked by passenger traffic (44,786,101 passengers in 2023 alone).
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Plans for a new airport for Chengdu had been in place since 2007.[5] In May 2011, officials confirmed the planning process for selecting a location had started.[5] In June 2013, the Civil Aviation Administration of China officially confirmed and approved Jianyang's Lujia Town as the location for the new airport.[5]
In January 2015, the State Council and Central Military Commission approved the new airport project,[5] and the official name Chengdu Tianfu International Airport (Chinese:成都天府国际机场) was finalized by the Civil Aviation Administration of China in September 2015.[6][5] In January 2021, flight testing was done[7][8] and on 27 June 2021, the first commercial flight departed from the airport.[9]
In March 2023, the Terminal 1 (international part) officially opened.
The airport is intended to become the third-largest airport hub in China, after Beijing and Shanghai. The airport opened with three runways (two north-south and one east-west) with two terminals with a capacity of 60 million passengers per year by 2025 and a cargo capacity of 24.45 thousand tonnes.[10]
The full plan includes six runways and four terminals with the capacity to handle 90 million passengers per year.[11] On June 1, 2015, the Sichuan Provincial Airport Group announced a general design scheme for the airport. The winning design was by China Southwest Architectural Design and Research Institute, China Airport Construction Group Corporation, and French architectural firm ADP Ingenierie.
The airport features two terminal buildings in the shape of the mythical Sunbird, used as a logo for the city of Chengdu. From a central hollow circular core, six arms radiate outwards with both terminals mirroring the other.[12]
Terminal 1 (int'l departures)
Terminal 1 landside
T1 Main Concourse
Airside of Terminal 1
Terminal 1 Int‘l Departure Concourse
Terminal 2 (domestic departures)
Airside of Terminal 2
Baggage claim area of T2
Tianfu International Airport is a major base for Air China. The flag carrier operates maintenance facilities, a 1,500-bed staff hostel, and a 2,950m2 (31,800sqft) lounge at the airport.[10] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the airport did not operate international flights until 26 March 2023, taking over most international and cargo routes from Shuangliu International Airport, with the latter specializing in domestic flights.[13] Beginning on March 28, 2023, Air China will change the flight to Taipei Taoyuan from Chengdu Shuangliu to Chengdu Tianfu.[14]
The two airport terminals will be connected by an Innoviaautomated people mover (APM) supplied by joint venture firm Puzhen Bombardier Transportation Systems Limited, which has also won the operations and maintenance contract.[121] To connect airport parking to the two terminal buildings there will be a personal rapid transit system, consisting of 6 miles (9.7km) of guideway, four stations and 22 pods.[122]
GTC Area of Tianfu Int'l Airport
External transportation
Concourse of Tianfu International Airport Terminal 1&2 Station
Highway
Chengdu Tianfu International Airport Expressway connecting the airport to Chengdu's Third Ring Road.[123] Opened December 2020.[124]
Chengdu MetroLine 19, on partially shared tracks with Line 18, has been in operation since November 2023 to provide a 30-minute express connection (about 40 min for normal trains) to Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport.Tianfu Int'l Airport T1&T2 Station
There are taxi and mobile app car-hailing services from Tianfu Int'l Airport to the city centre.
144-hour visa-free transit
Holders of passports issued by 53 countries do not require a visa for a 144-hour stay if they are transiting through Chengdu Tianfu International Airport / Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport of entry, provided that they:[125][126]
hold passports valid for at least three months from the date of intended arrival and visas for the destination countries (if required); and
hold ticket receipts (with confirmed seats, if applicable) departing in 144 hours, which shows that their first destination (including stopovers of any kind) outside China is located in a third country. Hong Kong and Macau are considered as third territories for transit purposes.
In order to qualify for the 144-hour visa-free transit, the traveler's inbound and outbound flights must directly arrive at and depart from one of the acceptable ports of entry from or to a third country (including one of the two SARs of Hong Kong and Macau). Both flights must have no stopovers of any kind within mainland China prior to arrival or after departure at the port of entry, and the outbound flight's first stop or destination must be in a different country than the inbound flight's. Travels between U.S. territories and the contiguous U.S. are also ineligible for the 144-hour transit-without-visa, unless one of their flights has a stopover in a third country or a SAR.
A passenger who completed the inspection process will be given a temporary entry permit, which may be in the form of a stamp or a sticker, with the approved area of stay as well as date of entry and departure.[127]
hold a passport valid for at least three months from the date of entry;
arrive by air, cruise ship or train (except for arriving at certain airports listed below);
hold confirmed air, cruise ship or train tickets to a third-country final destination outside mainland China departing in 24 hours (standby tickets are not allowed); and,
depart mainland China on a flight, cruise ship or train within 24 hours after arrival.
All nationalities are eligible for the 24-hour visa-exemption international transit through Chengdu Tianfu International Airport.[130]
"国际航线全部平移至天府机场 全货机航线分阶段平移至天府机场 现有地区航线可保留在双流机场"[All international routes are shifted to Tianfu Airport. All cargo routes are shifted to Tianfu Airport in stages. Existing regional routes can be kept at Shuangliu Airport.]. e.chengdu.cn. Archived from the original on 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
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