On October 8, flight MF831, carrying 161 passengers, took off from Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport en route to Doha, the capital of Qatar. This marked the 10,000th flight this year between Xiamen Airport and Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) partner countries.
"Many people from Fujian live in Malaysia, and we return to China together every year. Xiamen Airport offers numerous flights, fast customs clearance, and high efficiency. It feels great to be home." said Ms. Zhang, a passenger returning from Penang, Malaysia on flight MF8706, after clearing customs on October 8.
Currently, Xiamen Airport operates 13 direct passenger routes to 10 BRI partner countries, including Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam, along with 3 direct cargo routes. In the first three quarters of this year, Xiamen Airport handled 9,806 flights and 1.5088 million inbound and outbound passengers to and from BRI countries, reflecting year-on-year growth of 73.91% and 83.5%, respectively.
Xiamen Customs has enhanced customs clearance efficiency during peak periods by utilizing advanced equipment such as pre-arrival machine inspections and intelligent CT scanning. On the cargo side, as more Fujian products are shipped via BRI cargo routes, Xiamen Customs has implemented a 24/7 clearance model for freight at Xiamen Airport and is exploring "smart supervision" and electronic monitoring for cargo traveling to and from BRI countries. These efforts continue to reduce customs costs and improve clearance efficiency.
The round-the-clock customs clearance model for cargo has created an efficient air logistics corridor, helping Xiamen Airport attract valuable resources, boost its aviation economy, and enhance the city's overall competitiveness.
