SANGDUI, China, Sept. 17 (UPI) -- China has opened the world's highest-altitude civilian airport in the southwest Sichuan province, officials said.
The Daocheng Yading Airport, located in the Sangdui township, will dramatically cut travel time to the provincial capital of Chengdu.
The trip used to take two days by bus but will now take 65 minutes by plane, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.
The airport cost $255 million to build over two years.
The facility is 14,471 feet above sea level and replaces the Bangda Airport in China as the world's highest civilian airport.
The airport is only running routes to Chengdu, but will add flights to Chongqing and Maerkang County before Oct. 1, officials said.
Flights to Guangzhou, Shanghai and Xi'an will be added in 2014, Xinhua reported.
