Work started Tuesday on the planned Chubu International Airport, with construction of a man-made island beginning off Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture.
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| Workers dump rocks into the sea to build up the foundation for Chubu International Airport. |
Officials of Central Japan International Airport Co. said Chubu International Airport is scheduled to open by March 2005, in time for the start of the 185-day World Exposition. The expo is expected to be held in the prefecture, although an official declaration of the host site has yet to be made.
The airport, estimated to cost some 768 billion yen, will become Japan's third major international airport, after Narita airport in Chiba Prefecture and Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture.
However, experts have expressed doubt over the profitability of the new airport, as well as efforts by the airport authority and the public sector to protect the environment surrounding it.