Plans To Add Three Runways At Pudong

If the people who run Shanghai's Pudong Airport have their way, chances are you'll be stopping by for a visit the next time you fly to Asia.

Pudong, the newer of Shanghai's two airports, will augment its single runway with three more, according to the airport's website. The goal: turn Pudong into a hub for air carriers operating in Asia.

"The authority will actively study and set policies to support the development of an aviation hub," said Yang Yuanyuan, head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

It's a plain-language announcement that China is diving into the competition for aero dollars in a big way. China is staging its huge biannual air show this week, showing off its civilian and military assets as well as luring more and more companies into doing aviation business there.

Shanghai is considered a good bet in the race to build a regional hub in Asia. While Incheon, South Korea and Kansai Airport in western Japan are also contenders, Pudong expects 100 million air travelers to pass through its terminals each year by 2015. Its emergence as a hub would fee up the city's older airport, Hongqiao, for domestic traffic.

FMI: www.shairport.com/en/index.jsp