The 40-day Spring Festival travel rush, also known as "chunyun", which lasted from Jan 28, came to an end on March 8.

During the period, a total of 10,900 flights landed or departed at the Qingdao Liuting International Airport, transporting 1.15 million passengers and 20,900 tons of cargo, up 65.83 percent, 145.35 percent and 63.86 percent respectively compared with the same period in 2020.

An engineer conducts routine inspection of airplanes at the Qingdao Liuting International Airport during the Spring Festival travel rush. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Many Chinese opted to stay put during the Spring Festival holiday this year in response to the government's call to avoid unnecessary gatherings to prevent the spread of the virus.

According to the Qingdao Airport Group, the number of air passenger trips took a nosedive during the Spring Festival holiday due to stringent epidemic control measures. But passenger flow peaked on March 5 following an improvement in the epidemic situation and when people started to make their way back to work and school.

The Qingdao Airport Group took epidemic prevention and control as a key task to guarantee the public security and health during the Spring Festival travel rush.

Engineers work at the navigation control room of Qingdao Airport Group. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The airport prepared enough equipment, conducted emergency drills and strictly implemented epidemic prevention and control measures, said a senior manager, adding that workers at front line have all undergone nucleic acid testing, while all people and items entering the airport have been checked.

The airport also conducted routine nucleic acid tests on key groups of employees and the environment and frequently sterilized and disinfected important venues.

It has also carried out a number of volunteer service activities to improve the quality of service to passengers.

A staff of Qingdao Airport Group helps a passenger with his luggage. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]