Pudong International Airport

Pudong International Airport

Located in the coastal areas of Jiangzhen, Shiwan, and Zhujiao in Pudong New Area, Shanghai, China, covering an area of 40 square kilometers, it is about 30 kilometers from the city center. In 2009, Pudong Airport handled approximately 800 takeoffs and landings per day, accounting for about 60% of all flights at Shanghai airports. A total of 48 Chinese and foreign airlines operated at Pudong Airport, with routes covering more than 90 international (regional) cities and 62 domestic cities.

Shanghai Pudong International Airport is one of China's (including Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) three major international airports, alongside Beijing Capital International Airport and Hong Kong International Airport, collectively known as China's three major international aviation hubs. Shanghai Pudong International Airport is situated on the coastal area south of the Yangtze River estuary in Pudong, Shanghai, about 52 kilometers from Hongqiao Airport.

The first phase of Pudong Airport commenced full construction in October 1997 and was completed and opened for service in September 1999. The first phase features a 4,000-meter-long, 60-meter-wide 4E-grade north-south runway, two parallel taxiways, an 800,000-square-meter apron with 76 aircraft stands, a 50,000-square-meter cargo warehouse, and is equipped with navigation, communication, surveillance, meteorological, and logistical support systems, providing 24-hour all-weather service.

The Pudong terminal building consists of a main building and a concourse corridor, both three-story structures connected by two passageways, covering an area of 280,000 square meters. It has 13 arrival baggage conveyors and 28 boarding bridges; the commercial dining and other leased service facilities within the terminal cover an area of 60,000 square meters.

After the completion of the renovation project for the first phase of Pudong Airport, it will meet operational needs until the second terminal building comes into use in 2008, with the capacity to handle 300,000 aircraft takeoffs and landings annually and 36.5 million passengers per year.

Currently, Pudong Airport handles approximately 800 takeoffs and landings per day, accounting for about 60% of all flights at Shanghai airports. Around 60 Chinese and foreign airlines operate at Pudong Airport, with routes covering more than 90 international (regional) cities and over 60 domestic cities. In 2010, Pudong Airport’s passenger throughput reached 40.57 million, a sharp increase of 27.1% over the previous year, firmly ranking as the third-largest aviation hub in China, only 400,000 passengers behind Guangzhou Baiyun Airport’s 40.97 million. Its cargo and mail throughput reached 3.23 million tons, ranking first in the country, an increase of 26.9% over the previous year.

Runway 1 is located west of Terminal 1: Grade: 4E, magnetic heading designation: 17L/35R, length: 4,000 meters, width: 60 meters, with 7.5-meter-wide shoulders on both sides, featuring 6 rapid exit taxiways numbered A4, A5, A6, A7, A8, and A9. The runway’s approach lighting systems at both ends are designed to accommodate Category III precision instrument approaches.

Runway 2 is located east of Terminal 2: Grade: 4F, magnetic heading designation: 16/34, length: 3,800 meters, width: 60 meters, with 7.5-meter-wide shoulders on both sides, meeting the operational standards for Category F aircraft, featuring 4 rapid exit taxiways numbered F4, F5, F6, and F7. The southern end of the runway is equipped with a Category III precision instrument approach and approach lighting system, while the northern section has a Category II precision instrument approach and approach lighting system.

Runway 3 is located west of Runway 1, with the western side of the runway being the West Cargo Area: Grade: 4F, magnetic heading designation: 17R/35L, parallel to Runway 1 with a centerline separation of 460 meters. Its southern end (main landing direction) aligns with Runway 1, while the northern section is offset by 600 meters. The runway is 3,400 meters long and 60 meters wide, with 7.5-meter-wide shoulders on both sides, meeting the operational standards for Category F aircraft. Each end of the runway has 6 rapid exit taxiways, numbered C3, C5, C6, C7, C8, C10, D2, D4, D6, D7, D8, and D10. Both ends of the runway are equipped with Category I precision instrument approach and approach lighting systems.

Located east of Terminal 1, with a floor area of 480,000 square meters, it fully reflects the requirements of the Scientific Outlook on Development, emphasizing the design concepts of "meeting the operational needs of base airlines and their alliance hubs" and "putting people first, maximizing convenience for passengers."

The highly anticipated expansion project of Pudong International Airport will be put into use at midnight on March 26. At that time, the annual designed capacity of Pudong International Airport will reach 60 million passengers, 4.2 million tons of cargo and mail, and 490,000 aircraft takeoffs and landings per year. This information was released at the municipal government press conference on the afternoon of March 24.

Officials from Shanghai Airport stated at the press conference that the expansion project has “four major highlights”:

Energy efficiency and environmental protection. Analysis shows that compared to the original unoptimized design, it can save 54.9% of electricity annually, amounting to 130 million kWh, and achieve 50.8% energy savings for the year.

High technological content. The expansion project undertook 23 research topics, several of which have reached internationally advanced levels.

Superior operational management. The Pudong International Airport expansion project established five “centers,” including the Airport Operations Command Center. These five centers operate under “unified command and zoned management,” significantly improving the airport’s operational management efficiency.

Strong cargo handling capacity. The West Cargo Area has a designed annual processing capacity of 1.2 million tons. Once operational, Pudong Airport’s cargo throughput is expected to compete for the top spot globally.