Changchun Dafangshen Airport
airport in People's Republic of China
Changchun Dafangshen Airport (or Dafangshen Air Base) is a People's Liberation Army Air Force Base in Changchun, the capital of Northeast China's Jilin province. Originally constructed in 1941 by the Empire of Japan for the capital of its puppet state Manchukuo, Dafangshen Airport saw fierce fighting and was severely damaged during the siege of Changchun in the Chinese Civil War. It served as the city's civilian airport from October 1960 until 27 August 2005, when all commercial flights were transferred to the newly built Changchun Longjia International Airport.
Location and facilities
Dafangshen Airport is located 10.5 kilometres (6.5 mi) west of central Changchun. When opened in 1941, it had a runway measuring 1,465 metres (4,806 ft) by 145 metres (476 ft), and a taxiway measuring 800 metres (2,600 ft) by 80 metres (260 ft). After it became Changchun's main public airport in the People's Republic of China era, it was expanded multiple times, with a domestic terminal, an international terminal, and a 1,550 metres (5,090 ft) dedicated railway among the later additions.
History
Manchukuo and Republic of China
Dafangshen Airport was built by the Empire of Japan in 1941 to serve Xinjing (now Changchun), then capital of the Japanese puppet state Manchukuo. It replaced the older and smaller Kuanchengzi Airport (宽城子机场).
Near the end of World War II, a Soviet airborne force landed at Dafangshen Airport on 20 August 1945 and captured Changchun from the Japanese army. When the Soviet forces left Changchun on 14 April 1946, the communist Northeast People's Liberation Army took over the city and the airport.
The public source identifies “Changchun Dafangshen Airport” as airport in People's Republic of China. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Changchun, Dafangshen and Airport.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Changchun Dafangshen Airport”, the useful work is to connect “airport in People's Republic of China” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 24, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q8015824. Authority coordinates are 43.905, 125.198. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1941, 1960, 2005 and 1945.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Changchun Dafangshen Airport”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Changchun Dafangshen Airport primary sources, Changchun Dafangshen Airport archive and Changchun research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Changchun Dafangshen Airport”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Changchun Dafangshen Airport” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.