It’s destined to become one of the world’s biggest transport hubs.

So it’s perhaps not surprising that Chinese officials were keen to show-off the skeleton of Beijing’s new mega-airport – Beijing Daxing International Airport this week.

Representatives unveiled the primary structure of its 80billion yuan (£9billion) project on Monday, which boasts 1.6million cubic metres of concrete, 52,000 tonnes of steel and spans 47 square kilometres (18 square miles), including runways.

Due to open in October 2019 amid a massive infrastructure drive overseen by President Xi Jinping, it’s expected to serve an initial 45million passengers a year.

Eventually, that capacity will surpass 100million annual travellers, putting it on par with Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

‘Lined up together there’s roughly five kilometre of gates,’ said project spokesman Zhu Wenxin.

‘It’s a shining example of China’s national production capacity.’

Situated 67km south of Beijing, the airport technically falls in neighbouring Hebei province, though it will eventually constitute its own development zone.