Beijing Nanyuan Airport (in simplified Chinese北京南苑机场) is the major airport used by China United Airlines. The ICAO code of this airport is ZBNY while the IATA code of it is NAY). Beijing Nanyuan Airport is located in Fengtai District of Beijing. Beijing Nanyuan Airport is located at 3 kilometers from the South Fourth Ring, 13 kilometers away from Tiananmen Square. The airport flight zone was graded as grade 4C.
In 1904, two small aircraft from France conducted a field demonstration flight in Beijing Nanyuan Airport. According to some historical record, this is the first time that an airplane flies over Chinese territory. Therefore, you could definitely see that Beijing Nanyuan Airport is very important to the development of Chinese aviation history and without this airport, Chinese people might not be able to see the power of planes until World War and the development of the air force of China would not be so early.
In August 1910, the Qing government decided to organize some resources to start the aviation industry. Therefore, they decided to set up an aircraft manufacturing factory and tried to make some aircrafts in Nanyuan Airport. Of course, in order to let planes to take off, there should be a long runway. The workers created a long runway and Beijing Nanyuan Airport formally became an airport.
Decades later, World War started and this Beijing Nanyuan Airport became one of the major supporting bases for Chinese air force to fight against the enemies. Moreover, if Chinese leaders need to travel to other places to instruct the plans of the war, they would take off from Beijing Nanyuan Airport. Many leaders therefore had used Beijing Nanyuan Airport for their flights.
After the establishment of China United Airlines, the authority permitted it to use Beijing Nanyuan Airport as its base. Of course, a condition is that China United Airlines should share part of the military need of the Chinese military force to transport some of the materials to other parts of China. Thus, Beijing Nanyuan Airport is really very special to Chinese people.