China is gearing up for self check-ins at major airports, targeting improved airport operation efficiency amid robust growth, according to civil aviation authorities.

In 2019, all airports able to annually handle 10 million passengers should make efforts to extend self check-in services to more than 70 percent of passengers, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

The CAAC has made self check-in and paperless boarding major initiatives to ensure the safe and efficient operation of the country's major airports amid growing passenger volume.

In 2018, a total of 225 million passenger trips in China used paperless boarding with electronic devices, which saved 18.75 million hours of waiting.

By the end of 2018, China had a total of 235 certified civil transport airports, among which 37 airports were able to handle 10 million passengers annually.

China is now the world's second-largest civil aviation market. The country handled 610 million air passenger trips in 2018, and the figure is expected to reach 680 million this year.

(Cover: Tourists enjoy self check-in service at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province. /VCG Photo)