KMG - Kunming Changshui 🇨🇳

[Shepherd]

Airport Name and ICAO/IATA Code
Kunming Changshui International Airport (ICAO: ZPPP, IATA: KMG)

Location (City, Country)
Guandu, Kunming City, Yunnan Province, China

Airport Type & Size
Airport Scale: 4F, serving as national gateway airport in China. One of China’s eight major regional hub airports, a key node airport for the “Belt and Road” Initiative. An international hub connecting China with Southeast Asia.

Airport Facilities: 2 runways for now (4500×60m ×1, 4000×45m ×1) and 4 runways in 2029 (4500×60m ×2, 4000×45m ×2). One independently operated terminal building T1 and one satellite terminal building S1 for now and 2 terminal buildings (T1 & T2) and 2 satellite terminal buildings (S1 & S2) in 2029, with a total area of 1,560,000 square meters.

Traffic Performance: Consistently ranking among China’s top 10 airports in passenger traffic and approximately 45th globally since 2014. It handled 48 million passengers in 2024 (ranking 10th nationally) and 365,000 tons of cargo (ranking 12th nationally).

Why should this airport be added to World of Airports?
Plateau Airport, situated on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau of China with an average altitude of 2,103 meters.The thin air results in longer taxiing distances and times for aircraft.

China Eastern Airlines’ hub—the second-largest airline in China and one of the main hubs of the world’s sixth-largest carrier—benefits from a strategic geographical location.

Featuring one of the most iconic terminal designs in mainland China, the “Golden Peacock” architecture reflects the cultural characteristics of Yunnan’s ethnic minorities.

Major Airlines & Routes
Shanghai Airlines
Changsha, Hengyang, Jieyang, Shanghai Hongqiao, Shanghai Pudong, Xishuangbanna, Wenzhou, Zhengzhou,

Shenzhen Airlines
Guangzhou, Harbin, Nanchang, Shenzhen, Zhengzhou

Sichuan Airlines
Bazhong, Beijing Capital, Changchun, Changsha, Changzhou, Chengdu Shuangliu, Chengdu Tianfu, Chongqing, Dalian, Dunhuang, Guangyuan, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Harbin, Hefei,Jinan, Lanzhou, Lhasa, Lianyungang, Linfen, Longyan, Nanjing, Ningbo, Qingdao, Shanghai Pudong, Shenyang, Tianjin, Ürümqi, Vientiane, Wanzhou, Xiamen, Xi’an, Xining, Xuzhou, Yinchuan,Zhengzhou, Zhongwei

Spring Airlines
Changde, Mangshi, Ningbo, Qianjiang, Shanghai Hongqiao, Shanghai Pudong, Shijiazhuang, Yangzhou

Thai AirAsia
Bangkok Don Mueang

Thai Airways International
Bangkok Suvarnabhumi

Tianjin Airlines
Changsha, Haikou, Jiujiang, Mianyang, Tianjin, Xi’an

Tibet Airlines
Chengdu Shuangliu, Lhasa, Mangshi, Xi’an, Yuncheng

Urumqi Air
Zhanjiang

Vietnam Airlines
Ho Chi Minh City

West Air
Hefei, Nanjing, Zhengzhou

Xiamen Air
Fuzhou, Hangzhou, Quanzhou, Xiamen

Unique Features or Challenges
Unique Features (mentioned above):
Southeast Asia hub
Plateau airport
Classic terminal buildings
No snowy day all year

Challenges:
Long taxi distances

Optional: Links, images, maps, or videos
Kunming Changshui International Airport - Wikipedia