JINAN, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- East China's Shandong Province plans to build seven new airports to increase the total number to 16 by 2035, local authorities said Wednesday.
Shandong currently has nine airports and airport construction will speed up in the province in the coming years, said Wang Weizhong, chairman of the newly established Shandong Provincial Airport Management Group Co., Ltd.
The province will have 12 airports as of 2022, with three new airports in the cities of Heze, Zaozhuang and Liaocheng. Another four will be built in Dezhou, Binzhou, Tai'an and Zibo by 2035.
The province has opened more than 500 air routes, with over 60 international routes linking cities including Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris and London.
Airports in Shandong saw a 14.7 percent annual rise in the total number of inbound and outbound passengers to 57.6 million in 2018, which ranked 6th in the country.
