Off the coast of the port city of Dalian, a giant artificial island is becoming what could be the world’s largest offshore airport.By 2035, the new hub is expected to handle up to 80 million passengers a year. It is a prestige project, a testbed for offshore construction and an economic boost for China’s struggling northeast.
Details
🌊 An island built for flying: The airport is rising on an artificial landmass of roughly twenty square kilometers, making it larger than the offshore airports in Hong Kong and Osaka.
đź“ŤÂ Why Dalian is thinking big: The current airport sits in a valley, surrounded by mountains and operating at full capacity. Limited visibility in bad weather and a lack of expansion space are key reasons for moving operations offshore.
🏗️ Capacity and cost: Plans include four runways and a terminal of about 900,000 square meters, designed for up to 80 million passengers and around one million tons of cargo per year. Estimated cost: roughly 4.3 billion USD.
📍 A new hub for the northeast: Dalian’s position on the Bohai Bay offers short routes to Japan, South Korea and Russia. The new airport aims to connect air and sea logistics and help revive the region’s old industrial base.
📦 Logistics gateway for Northeast Asia: Dalian is already a major port with fast links to Japan, South Korea and Russia. The new airport will merge air and maritime traffic and position the city as a logistics and e-commerce hub.
⚠️ Learning from Kansai: Japan’s Kansai Airport shows the risks of offshore construction. Since 1994, its artificial island has sunk by more than eleven meters and suffered typhoon flooding, forcing costly upgrades to its foundation and storm protection.
Background
Offshore airports are not new, but they are increasingly relevant in densely populated coastal regions.China is driving dozens of new airport projects and aims to operate more than 450 civilian airports by 2035 to serve an expected two billion passengers per year.
The China Survival Guide for Western Businesses
Entity setup, WeChat strategy, hiring your first local team. 12+ years on the ground in Shanghai.
