Approval has been granted for the construction of a regional airport in Chizhou, Anhui province. Building work will start later this year and will take two-and-a-half years to complete, said Xinhua.

The airport will be located in Meilong township, some 20km from Mount Jiuhua, one of China’s four most renowned Buddhist mountains.

The project will cost Rmb734m and passenger throughput has been estimated at 500,000 a year.