Beijing: China has begun constructing the region’s first plateau airport – bordering Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan – as part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI), a news source reported.
Situated on the Pamirs Plateau in Taxkorgan, which is the only county-level city in the Autonomous Region of the northwest Xinjiang Uyghur, the project comprises an estimated investment of USD 230 million.
According to details, the airport will have the facility to accommodate 160,000 passengers, along with 400 tonnes of cargoes, on an annual basis. Furthermore, the Chinese government expects the plateau airport project to enhance the economic development of Taxkorgan and Xinjiang, as a whole.
Xinjiang’s Civil Aviation Administration Deputy Director Zhou Xiang stated that the airport would create a new ‘air passage’ to Central Asia and South Asia. According to sources, it would also help in boosting tourism since Pamirs Plateau is a potential tourist spot.
As per the construction company concerned, the project’s completion time is expected to be in the first half of 2022. It is hopeful of timely delivery with high quality despite dealing with impacts of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
