33
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1990
+
A NUMBER OF
OVER THE YEARS THE GOVERNMENT HAD IMPLEMENTED IMPROVEMENTS TO EXTEND THE LIFE OF KAI TAK. THESE WORKS CONTINUED AND WOULD PROVIDE MORE PARKING BAYS FOR AIRCRAFT, IMPROVED AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL AND IMPROVED ROAD ACCESS TO KAI TAK.
"EVEN ONCE ALL THIS HAS BEEN DONE, KAI TAK WILL BE OPERATING AT CAPACITY WELL BEFORE THE NEW AIRPORT CAN OPEN.
"IN THE 12 MONTHS ENDING SEPTEMBER, BOTH PASSENGER AND AIRCRAFT MOVEMENTS HAD GROWN BY 12 PER CENT.
"IF DOUBLE-DIGIT GROWTH CONTINUES, CAPACITY AT KAI TAK WILL BE REACHED AS EARLY AS 1993,' SHE EXPLAINED.
"
MRS CHAN POINTED OUT THAT THERE HAD BEEN SOME
AS TO WHAT THAT WOULD MEAN.
"IT
MISUNDERSTANDING
WILL NOT MEAN THAT AN AIRCRAFT WILL BE LANDING AND TAKING OFF EVERY MINUTE OF ALL THE HOURS OF OPERATION OF THE AIRPORT.
BE
"IT MEANS THAT THE TIME-SLOTS REMAINING FOR SCHEDULING AIRCRAFT WILL BE SO UNATTRACTIVE TO COMMERCIAL AIRLINES THAT THEY WILL EITHER UNABLE OR UNWILLING TO EXPAND THEIR SERVICES TO MEET DEMAND.
"THEY WILL THEN TURN TO OTHER AIRPORTS WHICH CAN OFFER MORE ATTRACTIVE TIME SLOTS THAT WOULD ENABLE THEM TO MAKE OPTIMUM USE OF THEIR AIRCRAFT AND PROVIDE A BETTER INTERFACE WITH THEIR ROUTE NETWORK, THE SECRETARY SAID.
TI
THUS WHEN KAI TAK REACHED CAPACITY MRS CHAN FORESAW THAT WE WOULD LOSE POTENTIALLY NEW PASSENGER TRAFFIC AND EXPERIENCE GROWTH ONLY IN CHARTER FLIGHTS AND CARGO OPERATORS WILLING TO USE NON SOCIAL TIME SLOTS.
"THE IMPACT ON OUR ECONOMY WOULD BE CONSIDERABLE,'
EMPHASISED.
SHE
MRS CHAN SAID MOST EXPERTS AGREED THAT THE ASIA PACIFIC REGION WOULD EXPERIENCE HIGHER LEVELS OF GROWTH IN AIR TRAFFIC THAN ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD IN THE COMING DECADE. OUR NEIGHBOURS AND COMPETITORS WERE WELL AWARE OF THIS; THE SECOND TERMINAL AT CHANGI AIRPORT IN SINGAPORE WAS ABOUT TO OPEN NEXT MONTH AND THE AUTHORITIES WERE ALREADY PLANNING FOR A THIRD RUNWAY, A NEW AIRPORT WAS UNDER CONSTRUCTION AT OSAKA, A MASSIVE NEW INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ON AN EVEN LARGER SCALE THAN CHEK LAP KOK WAS BEING PLANNED TO SERVE SEOUL, EXTENSIVE EXPANSION OF BANGKOK AIRPORT WAS BEING PLANNED AND A SECOND PASSENGER TERMINAL WAS TO BE COMPLETED IN JAKARTA BY 1991.
"WE
AT
CANNOT AFFORD TO LEAVE KAI TAK CONGESTED AND OPERATING ITS ULTIMATE CAPACITY, BECAUSE OF THE IMPORTANCE OF AN EFFICIENT AIRPORT TO OUR ECONOMY,
N SHE STRESSED.
THAT
IN 1989, 730,000 TONNES OF AIR CARGO PASSED THROUGH KAI TAK; MADE UP JUST UNDER 30 PER CENT OF OUR DOMESTIC EXPORTS, 20 PER CENT OF OUR IMPORTS AND OVER 16 PER CENT OF OUR RE-EXPORTS BY VALUE. ABOUT 85 PER CENT OF TOURISTS IN HONG KONG ARRIVED BY AIR.
/IN 1989