Mohe County in Heilongjiang Province, known as China's "north pole village", is going to open further to the outside world. In the near future, Mohe will have its own airport to allow for better transport access, according to a report from the Xinhua News Agency, and certain to be China's most northerly airport.

Located at the 53rd parallel, north latitude and by the north side of Daxinganling, Mohe is in the northeast part of China and is called, "Wonderful North Pole Land". As matter of a fact, Mohe has not only beautiful mountains and water in summer but also gorgeous snow scenery in winter. Its unique sights such as the "North Pole Village" and the "Sleepless City" attract more and more visitors from home and abroad each year. But for quite a long time, Mohe, situated deep in the forest, relies on only the railway to connect with the outside world, with transport access lagging far behind its tourism development intentions.

The future Mohe airport will build a 2,300-meter long runway with a total investment of over 100 million yuan (US$12 million). It is estimated that the new airport will make it possible for  small airplanes to land there, like the Xinzhou 60 and Doneer 328 with a flight route focusing on Harbin.

The project was included in the 10-year work plan of the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China on June 1, 2001. On March 7 this year, Gulian Town, Mohe County, was chosen for the airport with the approval of the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China.

Zhang Haifeng, the Party Secretary of Mohe County, said that the airport will begin construction as early as 2004 and hopefully will be completed by 2006 taking into account short frost-free periods and likely difficult weather conditions.

(China.org.cn by Zheng Guihong, August 31, 2003)