CHINA'S NEW ZHUHAI Airport has opened, amid growing fears that a Government ban on international flights will turn it into a gigantic white elephant.

The airport is equipped with a 4,000m (13,000ft)-long runway and a 90,000m2 (970,000ft2) terminal building, capable of handling up to 14 million passengers a year. The $482 million project was funded by the local authority.

China's Government, however, has banned the airport from handling international flights, to avoid competing with neighbouring Macau's new airport, which is due to open in July.

Other nearby international airports include Hong Kong's new Chek Lap Kok Airport, scheduled to open in 1998, and Shenzhen Airport, opened in 1991.

Zhuhai's Special Economic Zone authorities have sought to attract foreign investors to take up to a 49% stake in the airport. Many, however, are questioning the airport's economic viability in the absence of international traffic.

Flights between Zhuhai and 18 Chinese cities will start on 18 June. Domestic traffic is expected to total only 150,000 passengers by the end of the year and 200,000 in 1996.

Source: Flight International