Shuangliu International Airport in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan ranked fourth in passenger throughput on Chinese mainland in 2017, following Beijing Capital International Airport, Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, reported Huaxi Metropolis Daily.

Shuangliu airport in Chengdu handled 49.8 million passengers in 2017, ranking fourth on the mainland and first in central and western region, according to data released on Jan. 16.

Besides increasing passenger throughput, the Chengdu airport also saw growth in international routes.

The airport has developed 104 international routes, and expects to have 120 plus international routes by 2022, with a plan to open three direct international routes annually.

Benefiting from the expanding international cooperation, the airport has seen rapid growth in entry-exit passenger flow in recent years. In 2017, the annual entry-exit passenger data reached 5 million as of Dec. 12.

The city’s port and logistics authority said that Chengdu will focus on developing routes to Europe, Africa and other Asian countries in the coming years. A Chengdu-St. Petersburg direct flight is set to be launched later this year.