Aviation authorities brace for record number of passenger trips during holiday

Beijing Capital International Airport is gearing up to accommodate an increased number of international passengers during the upcoming 40-day Spring Festival travel rush, as China's civil aviation industry continues its recovery from the COVID-19 epidemic.

This year's Spring Festival travel rush begins on Friday and ends on March 5. The Civil Aviation Administration of China anticipates handling a record 80 million passenger trips during this period.

Beijing Capital International Airport, one of the country's busiest airports, is expected to manage 1.4 million international passenger trips, nearly 20 percent of the airport's total volume, according to the airport's announcement on Thursday.

Throughout the travel rush, the airport is expected to handle 7.2 million trips, a 60 percent increase from last year.

According to Li Guangxi, who works in the airport's operation control center, popular overseas destinations include Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore, Bangkok and Seoul.

To meet the passengers' demands, airline companies are increasing international flights during this period.

Hainan Airlines has recently resumed flights between Beijing and Bangkok and Phuket, and has added more flights between Haikou and Sydney, as well as Haikou and Melbourne, according to Wang Yanping from Hainan Airlines.

One day ahead of the travel rush, lines of outbound passengers were seen at the airport's check-in counters on Thursday morning. An airline company staff member noted an increase in international passengers about a week ago while providing guidance at the entrance of a check-in line.

To maintain order, barriers have been set up in a zig-zag formation in front of the check-in counters.

Groups of children, dressed in distinctive attire, waited in line on Thursday. Many of these children are participating in educational tours being offered during the winter break.

For instance, Wang Ruyan, a seventh grader, departed from Beijing to Rome on Thursday afternoon as part of a group tour. To avoid the crowds, she arrived four hours before departure.

Long Shangbang, who lives in the United States, traveled back to China for the holidays for the first time in four years in December.

On Thursday, he departed from Beijing to Japan and plans to return to China for the Spring Festival holiday.

"The airport is busier than I expected," he said.

China's civil aviation industry was severely impacted by the epidemic but has experienced a gradual recovery, particularly in the international market.