Lhasa City, Tibet Autonomous Region, southwest China - Recent (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of planes taxiing
2. Various of air traffic controllers
3. Planes in airport
4. Luggage conveyor working
5. Lhasa airport
6. Various of passengers
7. Airport building
8. Passengers boarding plane
9. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Yang Chao, deputy director, Airspace Management Office, Air Traffic Management Bureau, Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) (partially overlaid with shot 10):
"After opening the new air routes, we made a preliminary prediction. The airspace capacity along the line will increase to around 85 percent."
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10. Planes sliding
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11. Various of plane taxiing; taking off; scenery outside plane window
12. Plane captain working
13. Various of planes
14. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Huang Dan, deputy head, Navigation Meteorology Division, CAAC XiZang Autonomous Region Administration:
"After the multi-track Chengdu-Lhasa air routes were put into use, the north route is used to enter Tibet and the south route to leave Tibet. This helps realize one-way operation, and thus reduce the risks along the routes. We predicted that the safety risk will be reduced by 40 percent."
15. Various of Lhasa airport

The airspace capacity along the Chengdu-Lhasa air route is projected to increase 85 percent after multi-track air routes connecting Lhasa and Chengdu in southwest China were officially put into use on Wednesday.

The Chengdu-Lhasa air route is a main route to connect Tibet with other areas in China. Previously, 95 percent of the flights fly back and forth everyday along the route. However with the rapid growth of passenger volume and goods volume since 2009, the single route failed to meet people's needs anymore.

"After opening the new air routes, we made a preliminary prediction. The airspace capacity along the line will increase around 85 percent," said Yang Chao, deputy director of the Airspace Management Office, Air Traffic Management Bureau, Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

With complex geological conditions and changeable weather conditions, the single air route posed great challenges to the safety of flights.

"After the multi-track Chengdu-Lhasa air routes were put into use, the north route is used to enter Tibet and the south route to leave Tibet. This helps realize one-way operation, and thus reduce the risks along the routes. We predicted that the safety risk will be reduced by 40 percent," said Huang Dan, deputy head of the Navigation Meteorology Division, CAAC XiZang Autonomous Region Administration.