Kunming Flights

Kunming Wujiaba International Airport (KMG)

Airport Information

A busy, two-terminal facility, Kunming Wujiaba International Airport (KMG) is handling some six million passengers per year. Kunming's airport flights travel to and from a variety of Chinese cities as well as to and from some international destinations such as Thailand and Vietnam.

The airport is located about 6 km / 4 miles south-east of the city centre, close to Guandu and within the Chinese province of Kunming. Annual passenger figures have now topped 14 million and Kunming Wujiaba Airport currently ranks as China's number seven civilian airports. However, due to growth constraints, the airport is expected to relocate during the next decade.

Taxis provide the only other transport option for those who are not collected by hotel shuttles and can be found queuing outside of Arrivals. The Jiu Lu Da Airport Hotel is located within the airport's grounds and offers the nearest business facilities to Wujiaba Airport itself.

History and Facilities
Wujiaba Airport dates back to before the Second World War, although it was little more than an airstrip for most of this time. After some notable expansions during the wartime Kunming's airport began to gain popularity, although it was not until the 1960s and '70s that passenger levels really began to rise sharply.

Since 2004, the airport has been managed by the Yunnan Airport Company (YAG) and in 2007, the arrival of Common Use Self Service kiosks (CUSS) at passenger check-in led the way for other Chinese airports. Today, Kunming Wujiaba International Airport is now China's number seven airport with regards to passenger levels and cargo flights, serving thousands more passengers every single year.

Chinese style food is available onsite at a number of restaurants and fast-food outlets around Kunming Wujiaba Airport, along with duty-free shopping and other stores. Local buses run to downtown Kunming, the Daguan Tower and the city's train stations.

About Kunming Tourism
Nicknamed 'City of Spring' on account of its year-round fine weather, lush trees and plant life, Kunming is located in the Yunnan district of China, where it is the province capital. Famous for its wide variety of flowers, Kunming enjoys a sheltered setting, being shielded by mountains on three sides. Although the city does boast some historic sights, Kunming is very much a modern city and features stylish skyscrapers and wide boulevards, lined with palm trees.

Close to Wujiaba Airport (KMG), the main attractions in Kunming include the Black Dragon Pool, Yuantong Temple, the Yunnan Provincial Museum, Dianchi Lake, Daguan Park, the Western Mountains Forest Reserve, and the ancient Tang Dynasty Pagodas, located on the southern side of Jinbi Lu Avenue. The city enjoys a pleasantly warm climate with similar temperatures throughout the year, although visitors should be advised that rain is frequent in Kunming and often arrives without warning.
 

New Kunming Xiaoshao International Airport
New Airport Master Plan and Terminal Design, Kunming, China

The Kunming New International Airport is currently under construction and will be playing a pivotal role in the development of a new economic development zone of over 50sqkm located 25km outside the city of Kunming.
 
Netherlands Airport Consultant (NACO BV) has assisted the airport at different levels including airport city development. The focus was on, on- and off-airport development, with the off-airport development being the economic development zone.

The airport requested NACO to study how to integrally develop the area making use of the strengths of both the airport and the region as attractive business locations. The economic development zone was split into five sub zones, each with its own character, but all interrelated with each other.

A good example of interrelation can be seen in the proposed location of the flower auction in the economic zone. Flowers are time sensitive goods. Currently the auction is located two hours drive from the airport.

NACO suggested to not only move the auction closer to the airport, but to also integrate airport/airside facilities with the logistics required for the flower auction. As a result, the auction becomes perfectly accessible by land, creating quick connections to the aircraft. Quick delivery times mean better quality, resulting in an improved competitive position for Kunming in the global flower market.

The Arup team unanimously won the airport master planning design competition for a new airport that will handle 60mppa by 2035. The first phase of the new airport will accommodate 27mppa by 2015 with 89 aircraft parking positions. The second phase, to be completed vby 2020, is designed for 40mppa and 106 aircraft stands. The final 60mppa phase is designed for 2035 with a total of 141 aircraft stands.

The new Kunming Xiaoshao International Airport will be a multi-modal transportation centre linking the region via air, rail and highway and reaffirms Kunming’s ancient role as a gateway between China and the world.

The master plan includes a major cargo facility, linked by a tunnel under the taxiways that will be a major economic engine for the region and the airport city development. The airport city is being developed as an integral part of the greenfield gateway development.