Chengdu Tianfu International Airport in Jianyang, about 50km from downtown Chengdu, in southwest China's Sichuan Province, is put into operation, June 27, 2021. /CFP

The new airport is the largest civil transport airport built during China's 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), with three runways, two terminals and a transfer hub after the first phase of construction. /CFP

The airport is expected to serve around 60 million passengers each year initially, eventually growing to 120 million passengers per year. /CFP

Flight 3U8001 of Sichuan Airlines bound for Beijing, the first flight after operation, ready to go in the morning. /CFP

Chengdu is the third Chinese city with two airports after Shanghai and Beijing. The airport's opening will turn Chengdu into an integrated international transport hub linking China with Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and Southeast Asia. /CFP