Construction of Wutai Mountain Airport has started and it is expected to be completed in 2012. Total investment will be RMB600 million (US$89.95 million).
The airport will be built in Dingxiang county, 33 kilometers northeast of Xinzhou city in Shanxi province.
Wutai Mountain is one of the Four Sacred Mountains in Chinese Buddhism. In 2009 it was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site
The Wutai Mountain Airport is designed to handle an annual throughput of 350,000 passengers, a cargo and mail volume of 1,570 tons, and 4,550 aircraft take-offs and landings.
China.org.cn reports that when the airport is opened, tourists from Shanghai, Kunming, Sanya, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Changsha and Urumqi will be able to take direct flights to the sacred mountain.