OREANDA-NEWS.  The much-anticipated Xinqiao Airport in Hefei, capital of Anhui province, is about to open, with the Mount Jiuhua Airport in Chizhou, a southwestern city of the province, to follow in its wake, which will bring the total number of the province's airports to five.

As the countdown to the opening of the Hefei Xinqiao International Airport began in April, the Chizhou Mount Jiuhua Airport wrapped up its trial operation and, according to Jiang Houyu, president of Anhui Airport Group Corp., is slated to open in late June.

The airport is located in Chizhou's Meilong township, 20 kilometers away from the renowned Buddhist mountain.

Flights are set to be operated from the airport to those in domestic metropolises like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. Overseas route may also be launched to East Asian countries including Republic of Korea (ROK) and Japan, Jiang said.

Apart from Hefei and Chizhou, Huangshan, Fuyang and Anqing also boast an airport.

Under some agreements, all the three airports which have been in business for decades shall undergo renovation or expansion. For instance, the 20-year-old Anqing Airport nestling at the foot of the Tianzhu Mountain, one of the city's major attractions, will be expanded with the aim of handling 250,000 passengers in 2020 and 880,000 in 2040. Statistics showed about 90,000 passengers visited the airport last year, representing a year-on-year rise of 18.8 percent.

In addition, construction is expected to start on an airport in Bengbu in the north of the province later this year. According to a local development and reform official, preparations are now well under way.

Three more airports are set to be built in the province, said the Anhui Provincial Development and Reform Commission.

Last year, the municipal government of Wuhu and Xuancheng agreed to jointly build an airport, but there's no consensus yet on its location, an official with the commission said.

Bozhou's and Suzhou's plan for an airport is awaiting approval from the central government and the provincial government, respectively, he added.

Once these nine airports are put into service, air routes will radiate all over the province and local residents will find it easier to travel by plane.