Air transport moves forward in Yunnan

Yunnan province has moved its civil aviation industry ahead in the decade since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China Central Committee in October 2012, officials said at a recent news conference.

"Over the past decade, we have finished construction of six new airports and reconstruction projects of 12 airports," said Zhao Jiayun, vice-president of Yunnan Aviation Industry Investment Group. "The total assets of the group have increased to 58.25 billion yuan ($8.49 billion) from 31.09 billion yuan."

From 2012 to 2019, the group opened six new intercontinental routes and now has 636 air routes with 189 airports around the world.

Of the airports, 45 are located in Southeast Asian and South Asian countries. The province ranks first in the country on launching air traffic with airports in those regions.

The group also continues to increase investment in scientific and technological innovation to improve service quality and convenience for passengers. It has taken steps to contributed to rural vitalization, such as exempting airport cargo fees, which cut freight costs in half.

The group opened a special all-cargo freight-to-transport service for matsutake mushrooms, promoting the output value of local matsutake and helping to build the province into a matsutake distribution center in Southwest China.