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China to build world’s largest artificial-island airport to handle 43 million passengers.
China is constructing the world’s largest artificial island airport in Dalian to strengthen regional connectivity and trade.
China is constructing what will be the world’s largest artificial-island airport, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported, to enhance Dalian’s position as a regional transportation hub. The Dalian Jinzhouwan International Airport, currently under construction, will cover an impressive 20 square kilometers (7.72 square miles), as per the Liaoning provincial government’s official website.
Once completed, the new airport will surpass both Hong Kong International Airport, which spans 12.48 sq km, and Japan’s Kansai International Airport, measuring 10.5 sq km—both of which are located on artificial islands.
“For Dalian people to say it’s the largest, that’s exactly what it is,” aviation consultancy founder Li Hanming told SCMP.
The offshore Jinzhouwan Airport will serve the northeastern port city of Dalian, a hub for trade with neighboring Japan and South Korea due to its strategic location. Situated on a peninsula at the northern end of the Bohai Strait, the city of over 6 million people has grown into a center for oil refineries, shipping, logistics, and coastal tourism.
China’s revolutionary sea-based airport
Jinzhouwan is the first airport in mainland China to be built entirely on an artificial offshore island. According to the provincial government, it will eventually house four runways and a massive terminal spanning 900,000 square meters (9.69 million square feet). The terminal will initially handle 43 million passengers annually—more than double the capacity of the existing Dalian Zhoushuizi Airport—and will expand to accommodate up to 80 million passengers per year.
Airports Council International, a global industry group based in Canada, said the airport will also manage one million tonnes of cargo annually once fully operational. The entire project is expected to cost $4.3 billion and is slated for completion by 2035.
The Liaoning provincial government reported that, as of August, “deep foundation treatment” on a 77,000-square-metre reclamation area had been completed. Plans for further land reclamation and the terminal building’s foundations are also underway.
The current Dalian Zhoushuizi Airport, which opened nearly a century ago under Japanese occupation, has undergone multiple expansions but has now reached its maximum designed capacity. According to Xinhua, the airport handled 658,000 international passengers last year.
Li Hanming pointed out that the existing airport’s location in a valley, surrounded by mountains, makes it difficult for pilots to navigate, particularly in adverse weather. “Its location could make flights quite dangerous during adverse weather,” he said.
However, Li also cautioned that island airports come with unique challenges. “Island airports face a particularly high risk of being cut off if they are linked to natural land by single bridges,” he said, noting the vulnerability of such infrastructure to earthquakes, typhoons, or accidents like ship collisions.
China’s aggressive infrastructure expansion continues, with 22 new airports, collectively valued at $19.6 billion, under construction as of July, according to the CAPA Centre for Aviation, a market intelligence firm.
Once completed, the Dalian Jinzhouwan International Airport is expected to transform the region’s connectivity and solidify Dalian’s role as a vital hub for air transport and trade.
