The maiden flight of China Southern Airlines, an A380, departed from the Beijing Daxing International Airport at 16:22 on Wednesday to Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong Province, marking the official start of operation of the new airport. 

This will be followed by other carriers including China Eastern Airlines, Air China, China United Airlines, Capital Airlines, Hebei Airlines and Xiamen Air, which are also set to begin their respective operations.

Li Daxing, captain of the first flight of Capital Airlines flying from the new airport, said "I feel honored to navigate a plane today as the moment is of great significance just before the 70th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China."

Photo: Li Hao/GT

"The appearance of the terminal building is like a phoenix that indicates the Daxing airport soaring to great heights," Li added, noting that the new airport aims to reach the top in terms of passenger flow (more than 100 million) in the next 10 years.

"I feel happy and proud to catch a flight from the new airport, which features high technology and can be regarded as one of the first class airports across the globe,"

said a passenger named Wang Guoxing, who will take a Capital Airlines flight to Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province along with his wife and grandson. He is a Beijing resident.

"The operation of the new airport reflects the rapid growth of China's economy and exhibits domestic infrastructure. It is also a gift ahead of the 70th founding anniversary celebrations for the People's Republic of China," Wang told the Global Times on Wednesday.