Design and contractors

The airport master plan was prepared by NACO (Netherlands Airport Consultants)[16] and will feature a ground transportation hub that will provide the airport with public transportation connections with high-speed trains, subways, expressways, Beijing airport bus routes, local buses, and the airport's inter-transport system.

The terminal building was designed by British architects Zaha Hadid Architects,[17]​[18]​ French planners ADPI[19]​ and partners, and executed by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design (BIAD). It consists of a central axis with six curved radii.[20] The façade was designed by XinShan Curtainwall and the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design. Arup was subcontracted by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design as a fire engineering consultant, while China IPPR International Engineering was responsible for the security system and baggage system designs. BuroHappold Engineering,[21]​ as part of the consortium, worked with the architects to integrate engineering solutions into the airport design.[22]​.

Hong Kong design studio Lead 8 was appointed lead designer of the integrated services building (the sixth pier) in 2018.

The terminal, according to Lead 8, will encompass "a purposeful design of workspaces, with integrated retail, dining and entertainment options for the large number of passengers expected," with plans to incorporate interactive pet hotels, a day care center, hybrid online retail and dining, and a business showroom.[23]

Other contractors involved in the project include China Electronic Engineering Design Institute, Civil Aviation Electronic Technology, The Third Rail Survey and Design Institute Group Corporation (TSDI China), Beijing City General Construction Design Research Institute and Beijing Municipal Engineering General Research and Design Institute. Beijing TsingHua TonHeng Urban Planning and Design Institute, Central Academy of Fine Arts, Dtree, Lea-Elliot, Lighting Design Studio and East Sign Design & Engineering also participated in the project.[21]​.

Suppliers include Xsight Systems, T-Systems, Schindler, Thales, Beijing EasySky Technology and Oasys.[21]​.

Construction

Construction of the airport began on December 26, 2014 and was led by chief engineer Guo Yanchi. By March 2017, the terminal had its concrete structure covered. The first flight inspection began on January 23, 2019 and was expected to be completed in March.

On June 30, 2019, the airport officially completed construction and was in preparation for its opening in September. Construction of the airport cost CN¥120 billion (approximately US$17 billion), and other projects on the periphery cost CN¥330 billion (US$46.2 billion), giving a total cost of CN¥450 billion (US$63 billion).

Opening

The airport opened on September 25, 2019, just six days before the 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China, in a ceremony attended by Chinese President and Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping. Inaugural flights for seven Chinese airlines began later in the afternoon, although flights operating out of the airport that day were members-only, with the first official flight out of the airport being a Chinese-operated Airbus A380. Southern Airlines.[26]​[27]​ Flights for the public began the next day, on September 26, 2019.[28]​ The first commercial flight landed in Beijing Daxing at 10:12 (UTC+8), September 26, 2019.[29]​.

The airport serves as a hub for China United Airlines immediately upon opening and all of its services have been moved to Beijing Daxing. Others, such as China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines, will also relocate.[30][28]​.

Following the opening of Daxing Airport, Beijing Nanyuan Airport, China's oldest airport, closed on the same day. A military airfield will coexist in Daxing, as was the case in Nanyuan.

Service development

SkyTeam alliance airlines were initially planned to move to the new airport, while Star Alliance airlines would remain at Capital, effectively turning both airports into hubs. This was confirmed in 2016, when the Civil Aviation Administration of China announced that China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines along with other SkyTeam airlines would move to the new airport, while Air China and other Star Alliance airlines would remain at Capital.[31]​.

The intentions of China Southern, China Eastern and Beijing Capital Airlines to relocate to Daxing were confirmed by a Xinhua report in December 2017. Airport Group to enter the new airport. CAAC required each mainland Chinese airline (other than China Postal Airlines) to serve only one Beijing-area airport after the opening of Daxing, but allowed foreign airlines (including airlines based in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) to operate from both airports if they wished to do so.[33]​.

China Eastern Group and China Southern Group were each allocated 40% of the landing slots, with the remaining 20% ​​going to smaller mainland Chinese and international airlines. However, on May 1, 2019, CAAC changed this plan, with China Eastern Group ceding 10% of its allocated slots (to give it 30% of the slots) to Air China Group in exchange for China Eastern Group continuing to operate its Shanghai.[34]​.

SkyTeam members are slowly moving services to Daxing. China Eastern Airlines has moved some select domestic destinations to Daxing and has maintained a large presence in Capital. It will launch new international routes to Paris and Tokyo at the end of March 2020. Similarly, XiamenAir will move its hub routes to Fuzhou and Xiamen at the end of March 2020, retaining another domestic destination in Capital. Its global partners Delta Air Lines will reportedly move in at the end of April and Aeroflot will move in early June.

The OneWorld alliance announced in February 2019 that its member airlines were considering a formal co-location scheme at Daxing,[35]​ particularly as many of them now have codeshare partnerships with China Southern. Alliance members British Airways and Malaysia Airlines moved their flights from London Heathrow and Kuala Lumpur to Beijing to Daxing, while Finnair flies from Helsinki to Daxing and retained a daily flight to Capital.[36]​.

S7 Airlines will move all of its flights covering 5 Russian destinations to Daxing from Capital on March 29, 2020. Qatar Airways has also announced its intention to relocate to Daxing in summer 2020. American Airlines[37]​ will relocate from Capital to Daxing due to its closing partnership with China Southern. Royal Air Maroc,[38][39]​ which joined the alliance on April 1, 2020, already operates in Daxing. Cathay Pacific reportedly intends to remain in Capital.[40]​.

Some foreign Star Alliance airlines are joining full member Air China and connecting partner Juneyao in Daxing. In January 2020, LOT Polish launched a 4-week flight from Warsaw, complementing its 3-week flight to the capital. Also in January 2020, Swiss International Air Lines announced that it will move its Zurich-Beijing flights from Capital to Daxing at the end of March 2020.[41]​.

On October 25, 2020, China Southern Airlines transferred all of its flights from Beijing to Daxing Airport.[42]​.

Airport facilities

The first phase of the airport project is designed with a target of 72 million passengers,[43]​ 2 million tons of cargo and mail,[43]​ and 620,000 long-term aircraft movements.

Design and contractors

The airport master plan was prepared by NACO (Netherlands Airport Consultants)[16] and will feature a ground transportation hub that will provide the airport with public transportation connections with high-speed trains, subways, expressways, Beijing airport bus routes, local buses, and the airport's inter-transport system.

The terminal building was designed by British architects Zaha Hadid Architects,[17]​[18]​ French planners ADPI[19]​ and partners, and executed by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design (BIAD). It consists of a central axis with six curved radii.[20] The façade was designed by XinShan Curtainwall and the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design. Arup was subcontracted by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design as a fire engineering consultant, while China IPPR International Engineering was responsible for the security system and baggage system designs. BuroHappold Engineering,[21]​ as part of the consortium, worked with the architects to integrate engineering solutions into the airport design.[22]​.

Hong Kong design studio Lead 8 was appointed lead designer of the integrated services building (the sixth pier) in 2018.

The terminal, according to Lead 8, will encompass "a purposeful design of workspaces, with integrated retail, dining and entertainment options for the large number of passengers expected," with plans to incorporate interactive pet hotels, a day care center, hybrid online retail and dining, and a business showroom.[23]

Other contractors involved in the project include China Electronic Engineering Design Institute, Civil Aviation Electronic Technology, The Third Rail Survey and Design Institute Group Corporation (TSDI China), Beijing City General Construction Design Research Institute and Beijing Municipal Engineering General Research and Design Institute. Beijing TsingHua TonHeng Urban Planning and Design Institute, Central Academy of Fine Arts, Dtree, Lea-Elliot, Lighting Design Studio and East Sign Design & Engineering also participated in the project.[21]​.

Suppliers include Xsight Systems, T-Systems, Schindler, Thales, Beijing EasySky Technology and Oasys.[21]​.

Construction

Construction of the airport began on December 26, 2014 and was led by chief engineer Guo Yanchi. By March 2017, the terminal had its concrete structure covered. The first flight inspection began on January 23, 2019 and was expected to be completed in March.

On June 30, 2019, the airport officially completed construction and was in preparation for its opening in September. Construction of the airport cost CN¥120 billion (approximately US$17 billion), and other projects on the periphery cost CN¥330 billion (US$46.2 billion), giving a total cost of CN¥450 billion (US$63 billion).

Opening

The airport opened on September 25, 2019, just six days before the 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China, in a ceremony attended by Chinese President and Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping. Inaugural flights for seven Chinese airlines began later in the afternoon, although flights operating out of the airport that day were members-only, with the first official flight out of the airport being a Chinese-operated Airbus A380. Southern Airlines.[26]​[27]​ Flights for the public began the next day, on September 26, 2019.[28]​ The first commercial flight landed in Beijing Daxing at 10:12 (UTC+8), September 26, 2019.[29]​.

The airport serves as a hub for China United Airlines immediately upon opening and all of its services have been moved to Beijing Daxing. Others, such as China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines, will also relocate.[30][28]​.

Following the opening of Daxing Airport, Beijing Nanyuan Airport, China's oldest airport, closed on the same day. A military airfield will coexist in Daxing, as was the case in Nanyuan.

Service development

SkyTeam alliance airlines were initially planned to move to the new airport, while Star Alliance airlines would remain at Capital, effectively turning both airports into hubs. This was confirmed in 2016, when the Civil Aviation Administration of China announced that China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines and Xiamen Airlines along with other SkyTeam airlines would move to the new airport, while Air China and other Star Alliance airlines would remain at Capital.[31]​.

The intentions of China Southern, China Eastern and Beijing Capital Airlines to relocate to Daxing were confirmed by a Xinhua report in December 2017. Airport Group to enter the new airport. CAAC required each mainland Chinese airline (other than China Postal Airlines) to serve only one Beijing-area airport after the opening of Daxing, but allowed foreign airlines (including airlines based in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) to operate from both airports if they wished to do so.[33]​.

China Eastern Group and China Southern Group were each allocated 40% of the landing slots, with the remaining 20% ​​going to smaller mainland Chinese and international airlines. However, on May 1, 2019, CAAC changed this plan, with China Eastern Group ceding 10% of its allocated slots (to give it 30% of the slots) to Air China Group in exchange for China Eastern Group continuing to operate its Shanghai.[34]​.

SkyTeam members are slowly moving services to Daxing. China Eastern Airlines has moved some select domestic destinations to Daxing and has maintained a large presence in Capital. It will launch new international routes to Paris and Tokyo at the end of March 2020. Similarly, XiamenAir will move its hub routes to Fuzhou and Xiamen at the end of March 2020, retaining another domestic destination in Capital. Its global partners Delta Air Lines will reportedly move in at the end of April and Aeroflot will move in early June.

The OneWorld alliance announced in February 2019 that its member airlines were considering a formal co-location scheme at Daxing,[35]​ particularly as many of them now have codeshare partnerships with China Southern. Alliance members British Airways and Malaysia Airlines moved their flights from London Heathrow and Kuala Lumpur to Beijing to Daxing, while Finnair flies from Helsinki to Daxing and retained a daily flight to Capital.[36]​.

S7 Airlines will move all of its flights covering 5 Russian destinations to Daxing from Capital on March 29, 2020. Qatar Airways has also announced its intention to relocate to Daxing in summer 2020. American Airlines[37]​ will relocate from Capital to Daxing due to its closing partnership with China Southern. Royal Air Maroc,[38][39]​ which joined the alliance on April 1, 2020, already operates in Daxing. Cathay Pacific reportedly intends to remain in Capital.[40]​.

Some foreign Star Alliance airlines are joining full member Air China and connecting partner Juneyao in Daxing. In January 2020, LOT Polish launched a 4-week flight from Warsaw, complementing its 3-week flight to the capital. Also in January 2020, Swiss International Air Lines announced that it will move its Zurich-Beijing flights from Capital to Daxing at the end of March 2020.[41]​.

On October 25, 2020, China Southern Airlines transferred all of its flights from Beijing to Daxing Airport.[42]​.

Airport facilities

The first phase of the airport project is designed with a target of 72 million passengers,[43]​ 2 million tons of cargo and mail,[43]​ and 620,000 long-term aircraft movements.