The General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC) has announced new vertical airspace requirements, almost doubling the number of flights the country can handle.

The move aims to make better use of airspace to prepare for the increasing traffic brought on by the 2008 Olympics.

The new standards came into effect on Nov. 22.

The space between aircraft will decrease from 600 meters to 300 meters. Officials say the move aims to make better use of airspace, increase air traffic flow and reduce flight delays.

Before the move, China had seven layers of aircraft between 8400 and 12,500 meters. Aviation departments in many Chinese cities had difficulties arranging flights, since airspace capacities were nearly saturated.

Wang Jian, an official with the Beijing Civil Aviation Control Center said, "When airspace is almost full, we usually orders flights to wait before taking off."