Guilin Liangjiang International Airport

Guilin Liangjiang International Airport
桂林兩江國際機場
Guìlín Liǎngjiāng Guójì Jīchǎng
IATA: KWL – ICAO: ZGKL
Summary
Airport type Public
Location Guilin, Guangxi, China
Elevation AMSL 174 m / 571 ft
Coordinates 25°13′05″N 110°02′21″E / 25.21806°N 110.03917°E / 25.21806; 110.03917Coordinates: 25°13′05″N 110°02′21″E / 25.21806°N 110.03917°E / 25.21806; 110.03917
Map
KWL

Location of airport in China

Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
01/19 3,200 10,499 Concrete
Statistics (2014)
Passengers 6,897,741
Aircraft movements 60,804
Cargo 35,841.5
Guilin Liangjiang International Airport
Traditional Chinese 桂林兩江國際機場
Simplified Chinese 桂林两江国际机场

Guilin Liangjiang International Airport (IATA: KWL, ICAO: ZGKL) is the airport serving the city of Guilin in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China. It is located in Liangjiang, about 28 km (17 mi) southwest of the city center.[1]

In 2014, Guilin Liangjiang International Airport was the 33rd busiest airport in China with 5 875 327 people.[2] Around 4 million passengers transit through Liangjiang International annually, traveling to one of the 48 domestic and international destinations served nonstop from Guilin.[1][3]

History

During World War II, the airport was known as Kweilin Airfield and was used by the United States Army Air Forces Fourteenth Air Force as part of the China Defensive Campaign (1942–1945). Kweilin was the headquarters of the 23d Fighter Group, the "Flying Tigers" during late 1943 and through most of 1944 and also its command and control unit, the 68th Composite Wing. The unit flew P-40 Warhawk and later P-51 Mustang fighter bombers from the airport, attacking Japanese targets and supporting Chinese army units. In support of the combat units, Kweilin was also the home of the 8th Reconnaissance Group, which operated unarmed P-38 Lightning aircraft equipped with an array of mapping cameras to gather intelligence over Japanese-held areas. The Flying Tigers departed the base in late 1944, being replaced by elements of the Chinese-American Composite Wing (CACW), which flew B-25 Mitchell and P-51 Mustang fighters from the airport on combat missions until the end of the war in September 1945. The Americans closed their facilities after the war ended in September 1945.[4][5]

In September 1991, the State Council of China and the Central Military Commission approved a 1.85 billion yuan project to transform Kweilin Airfield into a commercial airport. Construction began in July 1993, and the airport was opened to the public on 1 October 1996.[3] It had replaced the Guilin Qifengling Airport.

Liangjiang International Airport now features a 2,800 meter-long runway, a 150,000 square meter large parking apron, 20 gate positions, and a 50,000 square meter large terminal building.[1][3] The airport has also invested 20 million yuan into improving Liangjiang International's aesthetics and making the airport more environmentally-friendly. The airport has received several awards for their efforts.[3]

Airlines and destinations

A China Eastern Airlines A319
A China Southern Airlines 737-800 boarding
AirlinesDestinationsTerminal/
Concourse
AirAsiaKuala Lumpur–InternationalInternational
Air Chang'an Xi'an Domestic
Air ChinaBeijing-Capital, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Shanghai-Pudong, Xi'anDomestic
Asiana AirlinesSeoul-IncheonInternational
Beijing Capital AirlinesHaikou, Hangzhou, Jinan, Nanjing, Taiyuan, Xiamen, Xi'an, Xinzhou, ZhengzhouDomestic
Chengdu AirlinesHaikou, ZhengzhouDomestic
China Eastern AirlinesHefei, Ningbo, Sanya, Shanghai-Pudong, Xi'an, XiningDomestic
China Eastern AirlinesSeoul-IncheonInternational
China Express AirlinesBaise, Beihai, ChongqingDomestic
China Southern AirlinesBeijing-Capital, Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Guangzhou, Haikou, Hangzhou, Hefei, Kunming, Nanjing, Nanning, Qingdao, Shanghai-Pudong, Shantou, Shenyang, Shenzhen, Taiyuan, Urumqi, Wenzhou, Wuhan, Xi'an, ZhengzhouDomestic
China Southern AirlinesBangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Osaka-Kansai,[6] Taipei-Taoyuan
Seasonal: Muan[7]		International
DragonairHong KongInternational
EVA AirTaipei-TaoyuanInternational
Far Eastern Air TransportKaohsiungInternational
Fuzhou AirlinesFuzhouDomestic
Grand China AirBeijing-CapitalDomestic
Hainan AirlinesHangzhou, Sanya, Xi'an, XuzhouDomestic
Juneyao AirlinesShanghai-PudongDomestic
Korean AirCharter: JejuInternational
Lucky AirFuzhou, Kunming, XiamenDomestic
New Gen AirwaysBangkok-Don MueangInternational
Okay AirwaysTianjinDomestic
Shandong AirlinesChengdu, Chongqing, Fuzhou, Hangzhou, Jinan, Nanjing, Qingdao, Wuhan, Xiamen, Yantai, ZhengzhouDomestic
Shanghai AirlinesShanghai-PudongDomestic
Shanghai AirlinesBusanInternational
Shenzhen AirlinesHefei, Nanjing, Nantong, Shenyang, Wuxi Domestic
Sichuan AirlinesHarbin, Sanya, Taiyuan, YinchuanDomestic
Spring AirlinesShanghai-Pudong, Shenyang, ShijiazhuangDomestic
Tianjin AirlinesGuiyang, Haikou, Lanzhou, Tianjin, ZhengzhouDomestic
TigerairSingaporeInternational
West AirChongqingDomestic
Xiamen AirlinesChongqing, Fuzhou, XiamenDomestic

See also

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

  1. 1 2 3 http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/guangxi/guilin/airport.htm
  2. ↑ 2013年民航机场吞吐量排名 (in Chinese). Civil Aviation Administration of China. 2013-03-24. Retrieved 2013-03-29.
  3. 1 2 3 4 http://www.airport-gl.com.cn/aboutus/aboutus_a.htm
  4. ↑ Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama: Office of Air Force History, 1983. ISBN 0-89201-092-4
  5. ↑ USAFHRA Document Search – Kweilin
  6. ↑ "China Southern Adds Guilin - Osaka Route from May 2015". Airline Route. 16 March 2015. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  7. ↑ http://airlineroute.net/2014/04/10/cz-kwlmwx-apr14/
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