Yang Yuanyuan, head of the General Administration of Civil Aviation (CAAC), has urged the air traffic control department to study airspace issues related to the 2008 Olympic Games and come up with a detailed plan as soon as possible. He said, ‘The key issues include adjusting air routes over Beijing during the Games, redesigning air routes for departing planes and planes flying through the capital’s air space and improving air routes in neighboring areas.’

A new set of initials to deal with: CAAC plans to apply the RVSM (reduced vertical separation minimums) system to handle the increase in air traffic. Air traffic in China is expected to increase by at least 50% by 2008, with the Games generating an additional 15%.

Another measure is to set up an air control region in Beijing before the end of this year, with terminals shared by both the military and the civil aviation department. IATA, which helped the Athens and Sydney organizers with air traffic control during the last two Games, said it would do the same with Beijing.