On October 22, the “2024 North Bund International Shipping Forum” officially kicked off in Shanghai. Among its key events was the “2024 North Bund International Aviation Forum” held on the same day.
With the theme “Digital Takeoff, Smart Skies – Co-creating a New Future for Civil Aviation,” the forum welcomed over 250 guests who gathered to discuss topics such as “New Productive Forces in Civil Aviation” and “Digital Transformation.” Participants aimed to collaborate on strategies for accelerating the cultivation of new productive forces through digital transformation.
Zhang Xiaohong, Vice Mayor of Shanghai, remarked on the increasing willingness of the public to travel by air and the strong growth in air cargo demand, noting the orderly recovery of the aviation market and its promising outlook. He emphasized that Shanghai is committed to keeping pace with the times, embracing new trends in green, low-carbon, and smart development, and advancing high-quality growth in air transport to establish itself as a world-class international shipping center.
The forum also featured a signing ceremony for the “Joint Strategic Cooperation Agreement for Building a Comprehensive International Aviation Hub in Shanghai”. This agreement covers areas such as planning, infrastructure, airspace, operations, and port construction, which will help galvanize consensus and strengthen the collaborative effort in building the aviation industry ecosystem, enhancing Shanghai’s position as an international aviation hub.
In the afternoon session, Li Ye, Deputy General Manager of China Eastern Airlines, presented the results of the “C919 Scalable Commercial Operation System Construction.” As the global launch user of the domestically-developed C919 aircraft, China Eastern Airlines has taken on the roles of “pioneer” and “explorer.” In just over a year of commercial flying, the airline has set multiple precedents regarding C919 operations and developed a set of industry-first operational guidelines, processes, and standards. These manuals serve to optimize operations and ensure the safe production and management of the C919.
Zhou Junlong, Vice President of Shanghai Airport Group, unveiled the “Shanghai Airport Brain – Multi-modal Decision-making Intelligent Agent.” The airport is at the forefront of implementing the national strategy for a strong transportation country and digital China, having published a digital and intelligent development outline. The initiative aims to build a “smart airport” characterized by a comprehensive situational awareness capability across all scenarios, precise resource forecasting throughout processes, and complex operational control capabilities. This project seeks to enhance airport operations and passenger services through smart integration.
Lastly, Zhang Yuan, Secretary-General of the China Civil Airports Association, presented the “China Airport Development Index 2024.” This index, guided by the principles of “Innovation, Coordination, Green, Openness, and Sharing,” offers a comprehensive assessment of the development of airports in China. The index stands at 106.65, reflecting a 6.65% increase from the 2019 baseline, indicating that the overall state of airport development in China has surpassed pre-pandemic levels.
