Mount Wutai, one of the four sacred mountains in Chinese Buddhism, will have an airport by 2015, officials said today.
The airport in north China's Shanxi Province will be 71 kilometres away from the scenic site and will cost around USD 150 million.
Mount Wutai, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is home to about 50 Buddhist temples built between the 1st century and the early 20th century.
The airport will include a 13,000-square-metre terminal building with five aircraft stances and will be able to handle 35,000 passengers per year, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Most of the construction work should have been done by October next year and normal operation should begin by the end of 2015, with direct flights to major cities including Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Kunming.
