Yibin Wuliangye Airport

Yibin Wuliangye Airport
宜宾五粮液机场
Summary
Airport typePublic / military
ServesYibin
LocationZongchang, Cuiping, Yibin, Sichuan, China
Opened5 December 2019 (2019-12-05)
Elevation AMSL420 m (1,380 ft)
Coordinates28°51′29″N 104°31′30″E / 28.858°N 104.525°E / 28.858; 104.525
Map
YBP/ZUYB is located in Sichuan
YBP/ZUYB
YBP/ZUYB
Location of airport in Sichuan
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
11/29 2,600 8,530 Concrete
Statistics (2025 [1])
Passengers2,091,670
Aircraft movements18,184
Cargo (metric tons)7,611.3
Yibin Wuliangye Airport
Simplified Chinese宜宾五粮液机场
Traditional Chinese宜賓五糧液機場
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinYibīn Wǔliángyè Jīchǎng

Yibin Wuliangye Airport (IATA: YBP, ICAO: ZUYB) is a dual-use public and military airport serving the city of Yibin in southern Sichuan province, China. Opened in December 2019, it replaced the older Yibin Caiba Airport. The airport is named after Wuliangye, a locally made liquor that is one of the most famous baijiu brands in China.[2]

History

The history of Yibin Wuliangye Airport can be traced back to Yibin Airport. Yibin Caiba Airport was a dual‑use military-civil facility that underwent two expansions, in 1991 and 1993. Because its location imposed significant constraints, the airport eventually lost the ability to expand further. In 2011, the airport handled 326,000 passengers—an increase of 12.4% over the previous year—and 2,737.6 tons of cargo, a year‑on‑year rise of 24.2%. With passenger throughput surpassing the 300,000 mark and reaching a new record since the airport opened, relocating the airport became an urgent necessity.[3][4]

The relocation plan for Yibin Airport officially began preparations in 2008, and the "Pre-feasibility Study Report for the Construction Project of Yibin Wuliangye Airport" passed the review of the national expert group in 2011. The selected site is Zongchang Township, Cuiping District, Yibin City and a project budget of 1.176 billion yuan.[3] According to the initial environmental impact assessment approval, the civil aviation flight area of Yibin Wuliangye Airport will be built according to the 4C standard, with a new 2,600-meter-long and 45-meter-wide runway, two connecting taxiways, and seven Class C apron stands; a new 8,000-square-meter terminal building will be built in the terminal area; the design target year for 2020 is 800,000 passengers per year, 7,375 tons of cargo per year, and 10,063 aircraft takeoffs and landings per year.[5]

On 14 May 2012, the State Council formally approved the Sichuan Provincial Government's request to establish the "Yibin Wuliangye Airport Construction Project." The new facility was officially named "Yibin Wuliangye Airport" and occupies an area of 4,500 mu (300 ha) in Zongchang Town (宗场), Cuiping District, 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) northwest of the city center.[6][7] Construction began in October 2016 with a total investment of 2.927 billion yuan, and the airport opened on 5 December 2019.[8] It replaced the older Yibin Caiba Airport.[7] The passenger movements of the airport in 2023 were 2,050,861, making it the 73rd busiest airport in China.[9]

After the expansion, the airport remains classified as a 4C flight zone, with a 2,600-meter-long and 45-meter-wide runway. The number of taxiways has increased, now including two perpendicular connecting taxiways, each 351 meters long and 18 meters wide, and one parallel taxiway. The terminal building has an area of 24,000 square meters, with reserved area for international flights. It is equipped with 6 boarding bridges and 13 aircraft stands (4B9C). It is designed to meet the target of 2 million passengers, 11,000 tons of cargo and mail, and 25,157 aircraft take-offs and landings per year by 2025.[10]

In 2023, the airport will handle 2,050,861 passengers, achieving its target two years ahead of schedule.[11]

Facilities

The airport has a runway that is 2,600 metres (8,500 ft) long and 45 metres (148 ft) wide (class 4C), a 24,000-square-metre (260,000 sq ft) terminal building, and 13 aircraft parking aprons. It is projected to handle 2.5 million passengers annually by 2024.[8]

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Air China Beijing–Capital, Beijing–Daxing[12]
Air Travel Changsha,[12] Lijiang,[12] Wuxi
China Eastern Airlines Kunming, Nanjing,[13] Qingdao,[13] Shanghai–Pudong, Wuhan[14]
China Express Airlines Chongqing,[15] Xichang[15]
Colorful Guizhou Airlines Fuzhou,[13] Haikou, Ningbo, Taiyuan, Taizhou,[16] Wuhan,[17] Yangzhou,[18] Yiwu,[12] Zhengzhou[13]
Shenzhen Airlines Hefei, Quanzhou,[19] Shenyang,[12] Shenzhen, Wenzhou
Sichuan Airlines Beijing–Capital,[13] Changsha,[20] Guangzhou,[21] Hangzhou, Sanya,[22] Ürümqi,[23] Xi'an,[22] Xishuangbanna,[24] Yancheng[20]
Xizang Airlines Changzhou,[25] Dali,[26] Hangzhou, Lhasa, Xuzhou[26]

Naming

The airport is named after Wuliangye, a famous liquor made in Yibin. This choice of name caused controversy in China. The name has been a target of ridicule by the public[27] and is considered illegal by some legal experts.[2] Although Zunyi Maotai Airport, an airport in Guizhou Province, is also named after a famous liquor brand, Maotai, it has not attracted as much criticism as Maotai itself is named after a town.[27] Responding to the controversy, the Wuliangye Company has declared that it has not paid to have the airport named after its brand.[28]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 中国民航局 (2026-02-26). "2025年全国民用运输机场生产统计公报". 中国民航局. Retrieved 2026-03-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. 1 2 宜宾机场更名被指违规 (in Chinese). Dongfang Daily. 25 May 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. 1 2 "四川宜宾机场将搬迁并命名为"五粮液机场"_财经_MSN中国". msn.finance.sina.com.cn. Retrieved 2026-03-24.
  4. ↑ 澎湃新闻 (2019-12-04). "宜宾菜坝机场运行27年后民用部分关闭，明起转场五粮液机场". 手机新浪网 (in Chinese (China)). Retrieved 2026-03-24.
  5. ↑ "关于四川宜宾机场迁建项目环境影响报告书的批复". www.mee.gov.cn. Archived from the original on 2019-08-03. Retrieved 2019-08-03.
  6. ↑ "大家谈中国：机场命名"五粮液"有何不可？". BBC News 中文 (in Traditional Chinese). 2012-05-25. Retrieved 2026-03-24.
  7. 1 2 国务院正式批复宜宾五粮液机场迁建项目立项 (in Chinese). Carnoc. 23 May 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  8. 1 2 Yao Xiaolan 姚晓岚 (2019-12-05). "宜宾五粮液机场今日通航：预计明后年通航城市将达到40个". The Paper. Retrieved 2019-12-08.
  9. ↑ "2023年民航机场吞吐量排名" (XLS) (in Chinese). Retrieved 2025-01-20.
  10. ↑ 宜宾新闻网. "宜宾新机场完成校飞 设备具备投产通航条件". 宜宾市人民政府. Archived from the original on 2019-08-03. Retrieved 2019-08-03.
  11. ↑ 中国民航局 (2024-03-20). "2023年全国民用运输机场生产统计公报". 中国民航局. Retrieved 2026-03-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 "‌【航班加密】8月6日起，宜宾=上海加密至每天2班！". Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 "春运来了！宜宾五粮液机场开通这些新航线！". Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  14. ↑ "东航川渝冬春航班计划". Retrieved 5 December 2024.
  15. 1 2 "‌华夏航空2025冬春换季，冬韵启航！". Retrieved 13 October 2025.
  16. ↑ "‌夏航季首日！台州机场正式开通哈尔滨=台州=三亚航线". Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  17. ↑ "‌2025年冬春航季航线一览，多彩贵州航空带您开启更多精彩旅程！". Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  18. ↑ "扬州直飞！新航线来了". 25 July 2026.
  19. ↑ "注意！晋江国际机场已执行民航2023年冬航季航班计划！". Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  20. 1 2 "盐城机场3月31日起执行夏秋时刻". Retrieved 15 August 2024.
  21. ↑ "Sichuan Airlines / Chengdu Airlines NW22 Domestic Network Additions". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  22. 1 2 "‌航班换季 | 三亚机场2025年冬春航季航班抢先看". Retrieved 6 January 2026.
  23. ↑ "2023年新航季川航最新航线出炉，附国际/地区航线新消息". Retrieved 16 March 2023.
  24. ↑ "‌西双版纳区域机场管理分公司2025年夏秋航季时刻表请查收！". Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  25. ↑ "‌都来看！常州机场夏航季航班计划全知道！". Retrieved 29 May 2025.
  26. 1 2 "‌干货收藏！徐州机场夏航季航班计划都在这里→". Retrieved 5 June 2025.
  27. 1 2 “五粮液”命名机场不孤单 “茅台”机场将比邻而居 (in Chinese). Yicai Daily. 25 May 2012. Archived from the original on 28 June 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  28. ↑ 五粮液: 我们没出赞助费 (in Chinese). Beijing Morning Post. 10 June 2012. Archived from the original on 17 July 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.