Kai Tak Airport

Kai Tak
IATA: HKG ICAO: VHHH
Summary
Airport type	Public, Defunct
Operator	Civil Aviation Department
Serves	Hong Kong
Location	Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong
Elevation AMSL	9 m / 28 ft
Coordinates	22°19′43″N 114°11′39″E
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 13/31 (Closed) 3,390 11,122 Paved

Kai Tak Airport
Traditional Chinese	啟德機場
Simplified Chinese	启德机场
Jyutping	Kai2 dak1 gei1 coeng4
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Qĭdé Jīchǎng Wade–Giles Ch'i3 te2 chi1 ch'ang2 Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Kai2 dak1 gei1 coeng4

Kai Tak Airport (Chinese: 啟德機場; Jyutping: kai2 dak1 gei1 coeng4) was the international airport of Hong Kong from 1925 until 1998. It was officially known as the Hong Kong International Airport (Chinese: 香港國際機場; Jyutping: hoeng1 gong2 gwok3 zai3 gei1 coeng4) from 1954 to July 6, 1998, when it was closed and replaced by the new Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok, 30 km to the west. It is often known as Hong Kong Kai Tak International Airport (Chinese: 香港啟德國際機場; Jyutping: hoeng1 gong2 kai2 dak1 gwok3 zai3 gei1 coeng4), or simply Kai Tak, to distinguish it from its successor which is often referred to as Chek Lap Kok Airport (Chinese: 赤鱲角機場; Jyutping: cek3 laap6 gok3 gei1 coeng4).

With numerous skyscrapers and mountains located to the north and its only runway jutting out into Victoria Harbour, landings at the airport were dramatic to experience and technically demanding for pilots. The History Channel program Most Extreme Airports, ranked it as the 6th most dangerous airport in the world.

The airport was home to Hong Kong's international carrier Cathay Pacific, as well as regional carrier Dragonair, freight airline Air Hong Kong and Hong Kong Airways. The airport was also home to the former RAF Kai Tak.

Accidents

Accidents at Kai Tak

Despite the challenging approach and mountainous geographical surroundings, there were relatively few accidents at Kai Tak. There were many instances of significant aircraft damage from unstabilised approaches, particularly following the "checkerboard turn" to Runway 13 in strong crosswinds and turbulence (damaged landing gear, engine nacelles and flaps slammed onto the runway, excursions off the runway, etc.). Some of the most serious accidents at Kai Tak during its seventy years of service were:

• 21 December 1948 - A Douglas DC-4 of Civil Air Transport struck Basalt Island after a descent through clouds. 33 were killed.
• 24 February 1949 - A Douglas DC-3 of Cathay Pacific crashed into a hillside near Braemar Reservoir after aborting an approach in poor visibility and an attempt to go around. All 23 onboard were killed.
• 11 March 1951 - A Douglas DC-4 of the Pacific Overseas Airlines crashed after takeoff into the hills between Mount Butler and Mount Parker on the Hong Kong Island. The Captain of the aircraft allegedly failed to execute the turn left operation after departure. 23 were killed.
• 9 April 1951 - A Douglas DC-3 of Siamese Airways lost control on its turn while attempting a night-time visual approach. The captain allegedly allowed the aircraft to lose flying speed while attempting to turn quickly. 16 were killed.
• Jan 1961 - A US military Douglas DC-3(C-47Dakota/skytrain) crashed on Mount Parker after takeoff.
• 24 August 1965 - A US Marines Lockheed Hercules C-130 lost control shortly after takeoff from runway 13. The plane plunged and sank into the harbour. 59 of the 71 Marines on board were killed. This was the deadliest accident at Kai Tak.
• 30 June 1967 - A Thai Airways International Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle III crashed into the sea while landing during a typhoon. The co-pilot, who was flying the aircraft, allegedly made an abrupt heading change, causing the aircraft to enter into a high rate of descent and a crash into the sea short of the runway. 24 were killed.
• 2 September 1977 - A Canadair CL-44 of Transmeridian Air Cargo lost control and crashed into the sea on fire shortly after takeoff. The no. 4 engine was said to have failed, causing an internal fire in the engine and the aircraft fuel system that eventually resulted in a massive external fire. 4 were killed.
• 9 March 1978 - A hijacker boarded a China Airlines Boeing 737-200, demanding to be taken to China. The hijack lasted less than a day, and the hijacker was killed.
• 31 August 1988 - The right outboard flap of a Civil Aviation Administration of China Hawker Siddeley Trident hit approach lights of runway 31 while landing under rain and fog. The right main landing gear then struck a lip and collapsed, causing the aircraft to run off the runway and slip into the harbour. 7 were killed.
• 4 November 1993 - A China Airlines Boeing 747-400, China Airlines Flight 605, overran the runway while landing during a typhoon. The wind was gusting to gale force at the time. Despite the plane's unstable approach the captain did not go around. It touched down more than 2/3 down the runway and was unable to stop before the runway ran out.
• 23 September 1994 - A Heavylift Cargo Airlines Lockheed L-100-30 Hercules lost control shortly after takeoff from runway 13. The pitch control system of one of its propellers was said to have failed. 6 were killed.

Accidents involving flights to and from Kai Tak

In addition, accidents and incidents of flights departing and arriving from Kai Tak include:

• One of the world's early commercial aircraft hijackings was that of Miss Macao, a Catalina operated by a Cathay Pacific subsidiary, which was bound for Hong Kong. Shortly after takeoff in Macau on July 16, 1948, four armed hijackers entered the cockpit. The hijackers shot the pilot, whose wounded body fell onto the control stick, causing the plane to crash into the sea. Twenty-six were killed; only the hijack leader survived.
• 23 July 1954 - Cathay Pacific VR-HEU flying from Bangkok to Kai Tak was shot down by PLAAF over international waters south of Hainan Island.
• 11 April 1955 - Air India "Kashmir Princess", a Lockheed Constellation, crashed into the sea after a bomb explosion, killing 16. A Kuomintang agent had planted the bomb on the plane during its transit in Hong Kong Airport in an attempt to kill People's Republic of China Prime Minister Zhou Enlai.
• 4 March 1966 - Canadian Pacific Airlines Flight 402 flying from Kai Tak to Tokyo crashed during final approach at Tokyo International Airport (Haneda) due to poor weather and visibility.
• 5 March 1966 - BOAC Flight 911 from Tokyo International Airport (Haneda) disintegrated and crashed near Mount Fuji, Japan, due to severe turbulence.
• 15 June 1972 - Cathay Pacific Flight 700Z from Bangkok to Kai Tak crashed in Vietnam after a bomb exploded on board.
• 26 May 1991 - Lauda Air Flight 004 from Kai Tak to Vienna via Bangkok. The aircraft disintegrated in mid-air after taking off from Bangkok due to malfunctioned thrust-reverse of an engine deployed in flight.
• 23 March 1994 - Aeroflot Flight 593 from Sheremetyevo International Airport crashed near Mezhdurechensk after the pilot brought his children to the cockpit.

Incidents

• Al-Qaeda's Ramzi Yousef had planned to blow up U.S. airliners from Kai Tak Airport as part of the Bojinka Plot.
• 18 October 1983 - A Lufthansa Boeing 747 freighter abandoned takeoff after engine no. 2 malfunctioned, probably at speed exceeding V₁ (the takeoff/abort decision point). The aircraft overran the runway onto soft ground and sustained severe damage. 3 were injured.

Future plans for the site

2002 blueprint

In October 1998, the Government drafted a new plan for the old Kai Tak Airport site, involving a reclamation of 219 hectares. After receiving a large number of objections, the Government scaled down the reclamation to 166 hectares in June 1999. The Territorial Development Department of the Hong Kong SAR Government commenced a new study on the development of the area in November 1999, entitled "Feasibility Studies on the Revised Southeast Kowloon Development Plan", and a new public consultation exercise was conducted in May 2000, further scaling down the land reclamation to 133 hectares. The new plans based on the feasibility studies were passed by the Chief Executive in July 2002. There were plans for the site of Kai Tak to be used for housing development, which was once projected to house around 240,000-340,000 residents. Due to calls from the public to protect the harbour and participate more deeply in future town planning, the scale and plan of the project are yet to be decided. There will also be a railway station and maintenance centre in the proposed plan for the Shatin to Central Link.

There were also proposals to dredge the runway to form several islands for housing, to build a terminal capable of accommodating cruise ships the size of the Queen Mary 2, and more recently, to house the Hong Kong Sports Institute, as well as several stadiums, in the case that the institute was forced to move so that the equestrian events of the 2008 Summer Olympics could be held at its present site in Sha Tin.

On January 9, 2004 the Court of Final Appeal in Hong Kong ruled that no reclamation plan for Victoria Harbour could be introduced unless it passed an "overriding public interest" test. Subsequently, the Government abandoned the plans proposed in July 2002.

Kai Tak Planning Review

The Government set up a "Kai Tak Planning Review" in July 2004 for further public consultation. A number of blueprints have been presented.

June 2006 blueprint

A blueprint for the redevelopment of Kai Tak was issued by the government in June 2006. Under these proposals, hotels would be scattered throughout the 328-hectare site, and flats aimed at housing 86,000 new residents were proposed.

Other features of the plan include:

• two cruise terminals
• a giant stadium

October 2006 blueprint

The Planning Department unveiled a major reworking of its plans for the old Kai Tak airport site on October 17, 2006, containing "a basket of small measures designed to answer a bevy of concerns raised by the public". The revised blueprint will also extend several "green corridors" from the main central park into the surrounding neighbourhoods of Kowloon City, Kowloon Bay and Ma Tau Kok.

The following features are proposed in the revised plan:

• two cruise terminals, with a third terminal to be added if the need arises
• a luxury hotel complex near the cruise terminals - the complex would sit about seven stories high, with hotel rooms atop commercial or tourist-related spaces
• an eight-station monorail linking the tourist hub with Kwun Tong
• a giant stadium
• a "central park" to provide much-needed greenery
• a 200-metre high public "viewing tower" near the tip of the runway
• a new bridge likely to involve further reclamation of Victoria Harbour

The following are major changes:

• hotel spaces are to be centralised near the end of the runway, and will face into the harbour towards Central
• a third cruise terminal could be added at the foot of the hotel cluster if the need arises
• a second row of luxury residential spaces facing Kwun Tong, built on an elevated terrace or platform to preserve a view of the harbour

The government has promised that:

• the total amount of housing and hotel space will remain the same as proposed in June 2006
• plot ratios will be the same as before
• the total commercial space on the site will also remain about the same

The new bridge proposed by the government, joining the planned hotel district at the end of the runway with Kwun Tong, could be a potential source of controversy. Under the Protection of the Harbour Ordinance, no harbour reclamation can take place unless the Government can demonstrate to the courts an "overriding public need".

The new Kai Tak blueprint was presented to the Legislative Council on October 24, 2006 after review by the Town Planning Board.

See also

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• Hong Kong International Airport (the current airport at Chek Lap Kok that replaced Kai Tak)
• Transport in Hong Kong
• List of buildings and structures in Hong Kong
• Government Flying Service (Hong Kong)
• Kai Tak Cruise Terminal
• RAF Kai Tak

External links

• An account by a Kai Tak Air Traffic Controller - Phil Parker
• Pictures from Kai Tak: Airliners.net - Jetphotos.net
• HK Civil Aviation Department Kai Tak webpage: [1]