LHASA, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- The annual passenger throughput of civil aviation in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region exceeded 5.72 million in 2019, up 7.57 percent year on year, according to the Tibet branch of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) Tuesday.

As of Dec. 30, Tibet's civil aviation saw 52,631 flights and freight throughout of 43,383 tonnes in the year.

In 2019, Tibet's civil aviation opened nine new air routes. The region now has five airports and 11 airlines operating a total of 101 routes, enabling convenient connections between Tibet and 51 cities.