The T3A Terminal and third runway of Chongqing's Jiangbei International Airport officially opened for operations on Aug 29, receiving approximately 80,000 passengers.

The terminal's first flight, operated by Shandong Airlines, took off from the runway at 6:20 am bound for Yantai, Shandong province.

The six-floor T3A Terminal building can accommodate an annual passenger throughput of 45 million, a total cargo and mail volume of 1.1 million tons and 373,000 flights. Covering a total construction area of 537,000 square meters, it is 2.5 times larger than the airport's T1, T2A and T2B terminals.

The new terminal features cutting–edge technologies, including an automatic baggage handling system and an intelligent parking lot, which can read automatically vehicle license numbers.

During its preliminary operations, 100 volunteers will be stationed at the airport to guide travelers, and free transit buses will also be available for passengers.

A passenger registers baggage using the automatic baggage handling system in the T3A Terminal on Aug 29. [Photo by Liu Song/cqnews.net]

Passengers pass through the gate after scanning their flight tickets in the T3A Terminal building on Aug 29. [Photo by Liu Song/cqnews.net]

Passengers board a free transit bus at the T3A Terminal on Aug 29. [Photo by Liu Song/cqnews.net]

Edited by Zachary Dye