Chinese firm succeeds in lifting, fitting iconic air corridor in Egypt's new capital

CAIRO -- After 18 hours of hard work by the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), the iconic air corridor connecting two office buildings in the central business district (CBD) of Egypt's new administrative capital was successfully lifted and held in place on Wednesday.

The skyway made of steel, which has a span of 31.4 meters and weighs 161 tons, has been cordially described as the Corridor of China-Egypt Friendship or the Gateway to China-Egypt Cooperation.

This is the first time that the CSCEC, which has contracted to build the CBD of Egypt's new administrative capital, adopted in Egypt the efficient technique of assembling the air corridor on the ground before lifting and fitting it in mid-air, which saves both time and effort and lessens safety risks.

The air corridor was finally placed between the 29th and 30th floor, after being lifted about 141 meters above the ground.

Zhang Shanyou, the chief engineer of CSCEC Egypt, expressed his gratitude for the trust and support of the relevant partners as well as the hard work of all the Chinese and Egyptian staff.

"In face of the COVID-19 impact, we took active measures to cooperate with the Egyptian government in ensuring the livelihood, employment and production in the country. The cooperation and friendship between China and Egypt prove to have become deeper and stronger through the test of the pandemic," said Zhang.

Zhang Yiqing, the manager of the Package Four (P4) project that includes the air corridor, said the success in lifting and fitting the air corridor is an important achievement made by the Chinese and Egyptian employees through their joint hard work despite the COVID-19 epidemic.

All the P4 staff will exert their best effort to achieve the perfect performance of the project on the occasion of the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Egypt, he noted.

Being built some 50 km east of Egypt's capital Cairo, the CBD project in the country's new administrative capital covers an area of about 505,000 square meters and includes 20 new high-rise buildings and some municipal facilities.