COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSPORT
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Two new baggage reclaim units with automatic displays to indicate the location of arriving passengers' baggage were brought into operation to complement the two existing baggage reclaim units.
Passenger handling capacity was increased from 2,200 to 4,500 people an hour. On completion of the improvement programme in late 1979, it is expected that the capacity will be further increased to 5,500 people an hour.
The computerised automated flight information display system was brought into full operation during the year. Relevant information about incoming and outgoing flights is processed by a computer and displayed on large flapboards and television monitors at a number of strategic positions in the arrival and departure halls.
To improve air traffic control, a new long-range radar was being installed on Mount Parker to control, at extended ranges, aircraft flying on airways to and from Hong Kong.
This radar, which is expected to be functional by April, 1978, will give precise posi- tions of aircraft within 250 nautical miles and at altitudes up to 18,300 metres. The data collected by the radar will be conveyed to the Air Traffic Control Centre at the airport by a micro-wave radio link. It will complement the high-resolution approach radar on Beacon Hill that controls aircraft within 60 nautical miles of the airport, the precision approach radar at the airport that guides aircraft within 10 nautical miles to the runway during poor visibility, and the secondary surveillance radar on Mount Parker that provides identification and altitude information on commercial aircraft. A sequenced strobe-lights system installed on the curved approach to runway 13 became operational late in the year. Adjustments were still being made to achieve optimum light output as seen from the air and minimal light spectrum as seen from the ground.
Shipping
The Kwai Chung Container Terminal, which ranks among the top four container terminals in the world, handled the equivalent of 1.2 million 20-foot containers in 1977. The terminal has six berths totalling more than 1,800 metres fronting on to more than 60 hectares of cargo-handling space, which includes container yards and container freight stations. Up to six 'third-generation' containerships can be simultaneously accommodated and worked at these berths, all of which are operated by private com- panies or consortia.
The terminal is located in the north-western part of Victoria Harbour one of the most perfect natural harbours in the world, varying in width from 1.6 to 9.6 kilo- metres and having an area of some 6,000 hectares. Besides its container-handling capacities, the port caters for all the requirements of modern shipping. Hong Kong is prominent as a pivotal port in South-east Asia, with a considerable 'feeder' trade being conducted principally with ports in Taiwan, the Philippines and Korea. The port is state-owned and administered by the Director of Marine. He is advised by the Port Executive Committee on the shipping, commercial and other changing needs of the port. The Port Committee advises the Governor on all long-term planning aspects.
In 1977, some 8,700 calls at Hong Kong were made by ocean-going vessels. The total deadweight tonnage of cargo imported and exported through the port by such vessels was more than 23 million tonnes. This included almost 17.5 million tonnes of