Beijing plans to start construction of a second airport this year, which will be operational in 2016, a senior official of the city’s airport operator said yesterday.

The new airport is expected to handle 40 million passengers annually under the first phase of its development, Zhang Guanghui, general manager of Beijing Capital International Airport Co, said on the sidelines of the China Aviation Congress in Shanghai.

Zhang said the airport and the Beijing city government will invest in the second airport, which will be located in Daxing District in south Beijing. But he didn’t reveal the investment figure.

Beijing Capital International Airport is expected to handle more than 80 million passengers this year, a rise of 8 percent from last year. But the growth will be slower than the 13.1 percent jump in 2010, he said.

Shanghai’s two airports may also experience a slower pace of expansion in passenger throughput this year now that the Shanghai World Expo has ended, Yuan Shunzhou, vice president of Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, said yesterday.

"Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport are set to handle 70 million passengers this year, similar to last year’s," Yuan said.

The Hongqiao terminal may handle 32 million passengers this year, a slight rise from 31.6 million passengers in 2010, he said.