At 10:40 a.m. on June 26, 2022, the construction of the third runway of Wuhan Tianhe Airport officially started, marking another important progress in the reconstruction and expansion of Tianhe Airport.

Wuhan Tianhe Airport Third Runway Project

The role of the airport runway is for aircraft to take off and land. Therefore, the number of runways has a direct representation of the airport's take-off and landing capacity. It is understood that the third runway project of Wuhan Tianhe Airport is designed to meet the annual passenger throughput of 63 million passengers and cargo and mail throughput of 800,000 tons. The estimated total investment is 3.08 billion yuan. It is planned to be completed in June 2024, mainly including airport engineering and For the air traffic control project, it is proposed to build a third runway (Class 4E) with a length of 3200 meters and a width of 45 meters and a corresponding taxiway system.

According to reports, Tianhe Airport has two runways, 3400 meters long (4E level) and 3600 meters long (4F level). After the completion of the third runway, the annual flight throughput capacity can be increased by 60,000 to 80,000, and the peak hour capacity can be increased by 15 to 18 flights per day, creating conditions for Tianhe Airport to open up more passenger routes and encrypt more flights in the future.

The main construction contents of the third runway project of Wuhan Tianhe Airport include: a new 3,200-meter-long, 45-meter-wide 4E-level runway and a 3,200-meter-long, 23-meter-wide parallel slideway; the runway is equipped with a Class I precision approach system in both directions, supporting Construction of navigation aids lighting, power supply, water supply and drainage, fire fighting and other facilities.

It is understood that the third runway of Wuhan Tianhe Airport adopts a short-distance runway, which is only 360 meters away from the second runway. It is the shortest distance between runways in China at present. Under the condition of ensuring the development of the airport, it can reduce the occupation of land resources, avoid or reduce the airport's The development of Huangpi District is affected by headroom restrictions and noise. At the same time, more sufficient space can be reserved between the airport and the expressway around the city, and the high-speed railway along the river and the Wuhan Tianhe high-speed railway station can be built, so that the airport and the city can develop in harmony.

According to reports, Wuhan Tianhe Airport was launched in April 1995, the second runway was put into use in August 2016, and the T3 terminal was officially opened in August 2017. After several rounds of expansion, it currently has 3 terminals and 2 runways. In 2019, before the epidemic, the passenger throughput of Wuhan Tianhe Airport reached 27.15 million. Up to now, Wuhan Tianhe Airport has opened a total of 217 routes and 139 navigation points, including 196 domestic routes, 21 international and regional routes, and 18 international and regional all-cargo routes.

After the third runway project of Wuhan Tianhe Airport is completed and put into use, Wuhan Tianhe Airport will form a short-range runway system with one runway that can take off and land independently, two runways for takeoff and three runways for landing, which can increase 60,000 to 80,000 flights per year. During peak hours, the capacity can be increased by 15 to 18 sorties. According to the plan, Wuhan Tianhe Airport will strive to form a large airport pattern of "5 runways + dual terminal area" by 2035. Editor/He Yuting