1958-06-25 — Page 4

THE CHINA MAIL,”

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25, 1958.

Sometime in early September a sleek silver-winged airliner will add another chapter to Hongkong's history when it flies through Lyemun Gap, lowers its landing gear and touches down on the new 8,000-foot runway at Kai Tak. Now after two and a half years of sweat and toil, the first phase of

Hongkong's new airport project nears the final stages.

The runway promontory, Flying Training School will by floating cranes, The sund which was begun in Febru- be moving their hangar filling was dredged from ury 1956, is scheduled for within a few weeks to make Hunghom Bay, Joss Bay completion within the first way for the runway exten- and Tsing I Island. two weeks in September. All sion. that remains to be finished on the actual runway is the 300-foot concrete threshold at the seaward end, and the laying of some 80 acres of grass Bod.

be seen

In those carly days, passenger services with many taking off, road traffle was held 1 ht beginning again, this For Frie: avision history there populace

British aircraft carrier Chinese cilles.

up sometimes for as long as 15 time to keep his plane running have been a number of crashes The

Such was the ease unit the minutes, In a straight line on an even making the Chinese public some- Pegasus came into harbour in

1824. When one of her aircraft Communists took control after keel,

what nervous.” Glancing

But through some old

since 1052, Hongkong flew over the Colony, the sight the war.

enough to moke the Ten years later, when civil records this could easily have Airport has not had a reportable was

down tools 10 the aviation was coming into its own been the ease. Kai Tok's early accident and the safety record Chinese

middle of work and gape In a Pan-American World Airways flying boat touched down on the

By

A

Andrew Sloan

amazement.

But with the new runway that problem will not exist.

The Clearwater Bay Road will be ro-aligned and widened to take the expected heavy dow of - traffic.

new

Two round-the-world flights sea beside Stonecutters Island Plans are being discussed as stopped at Hongkong that year, to open the last link in a round to the possibility of construct-

An American team of three-the-world passenger service.

ing second road inside the alz- aircraft stopped here for a day

port arco, parallel to Clearwater before continuing on their After the war the runways Bay Road, Journey: Then, In June, #

This concerna the road at: were re-surfaced with tar and British pilot flying a seaplane asphalt, but ever since then there present still in use by the con-

behind Stonecutters Decomposed granite history was not a happy end. It boasts is one that can com- landed

has been a great deal of trouble tractors which they used to Island, Civil which was once

hill R is dotted ♫ The Director of

with the murfacing because it transport granite from the Kuw- with reports of pare with the best airports in

the world.

The Governor of Hongkong in was not designed to take such loon Teni hilis, across Clear- the Hong- crashes and fatalities, Aviation, Mr M.J. Muspratt- towering over

the modern air water Bay Road and Into the correspondent wrote in This safety record has been 1027, Sir Willam Peel, said at heavy loads Williams, pointed out on his kong and Shanghai Buzik 1924, Hongkong, flying factil- maintained only by strict land- a dinner given by the Engineers aft of today.

runway promontory now being de-

taken by the Institute that work had "begun iles are severely limited by the ing precautions working plan that they are flats

Trafic problems arose with construction area, the mollshed, at the end of absence of a flat piece of ground Department of Civil Aviation. on an aerodrome for Haugkong, the lengthening of runway - 81

TOMORROW: right in the middle of

College Rond, was trans- and also by the treacherous alr Aeroplanes were still a source He prophesied that Hongkong (over Clearwater Bay Road). proposed runway.

In of wonder 40 the Chinese would be on important link in nitcraft were landing or Plans For The Now Terminal ☆

Talking to him, I was able ported to the runway pro- currents around her hili,

fleet of Around and about the to learn of the amount of montory by a present airport there can work which has gone into trucks.

When fully completed and signs of activity the first phase and, further pointing to the next stages just what difficulties are ready for night-flying and full operations, the runway of the construction of the ahead.

will be 8,340 feet long and $125 million nirport pro..

200 feet wide. Running He said: "When planning parallel to the runway is a ject.

began two, important points 60-foot wide taxiway. Be were outstanding. The first tween these lies a grass area was the necessity of pro- some 230 feet wide. Green viding adequate runways for grass will stretch the length Hongkong the present large (and in of the promontory, broken Auxiliary Air Force site. the future probably larger). In four places by junctions It is planned that this aircraft. Secondly the run between runway and taxi- area will be the freight and way must have the best and mall section of the proposed most modern equipment for new airport. The freight safe aircraft movement in buildings will be used as a and out of the airport both temporary terminal unt during the day and at the new terminal is com- night." pleted.

Across the runway from The present airport termin- al, construction and excava tion work is in progress on the former

Another important point which had to be taken into The Hongkong Aircraft consideration was the large Engineering Company will area which would be needed also have their hangars and to park many large aircraft, workshops near these In the months the runway buildings. Thus the terminal,- has been under construction, the freight and mail a seawall of granite, 16,800 buildings and the muin- feet long, has been laid and tenance section will run in filled with more n line parallel to Clearwater million cuble yards of sand Bay Road.

A temporary control tower

than 10

and decomposed granite.

Most of the large granite

Is at present under con- chunks were brought from struction just off the road Kum Tong Quarry by light

way.

A second ares of grass 250 feet wide on the op- posite side of the runway stretches practically the whole length of the pro montory at the time of writing."

When this runway comes into operation, the two former runways will close clown. Normal daily scheduled flights will carry on as usual on the new strip while construction work on other parts of the airport continues.

A further 000 feet of asphalt will be added onto the runway when the nullah running parabel

into Kai Tak. The Far East er and lowered into position, to the Clearwater Bay Road is

TUNG WAH GROUP OF HOSPITALS

CHARITY CONCERT

In aid of the building of the Now Kwong Wah Hospital to be held

on Friday, 27th Juno, 1958, at 7.45 p.m.

at the Hong Kong Football Club Stadium

HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR & LADY BLACK

have graciously consented to

be present at the function.

Main Attractions—

1. Dragon Dance,

2. Lion Dance.

realigned and diverted to pass underground past the present HAECO Installations, to the sea, In the meantime a taxiway is being constructed from the base of the promontory to join with the temporary terminal build- ing, so that aircraft from the runway can bypass construction work and reach the intermediate terminal.

The labour force working on the project has numbered be- tween two and three thousand, 95 per cent of whom are locally employed workmen.

Originally there were 60 French engineers from the Soclete Francaise d'Enterprises de Dragages et de Travaux Publics, who were awarded the contract for the construction of the runway promontory in con- Junction with. Gammon (Mainya) Lid

A tar-topping on the 5,340 foot runway has been completed. The asphalt has been laid over, a layer of crushed granito, which

3. Cantonese and Mandarin songs by famous opera will allow for any settling over

and movie stars, etc.

the next few years.

At the south-eastern end, that to the seaward end, a consoli- over-ruut or concrete threshold is being given the final touches,

Admission Tickets of $100, $50 & $20 dated

will be available at

The Show Room of Far East Motors Ltd,

Pedder Street

and also at

THE TUNGWAH HOSPITAL 12 Po Yan Strent. Tal, 43811.

Standing at the end of this runway' I watched a bir modera airliner POUDA Lion' Rock, follow the hills and land on runway 31. It was then I thought how it must have been MARY YORIS REV.

A young pliot making practi- cally the same approach, but in small light monoplane, fatit. ing the controls to keep from being turned over In tho treacherous "air curtents of the wurrounding hills. Once on the "rufway,” a rutted press' Aron,'

Here's How

It Looks

كلم

Above: This is what the new runway will look to to the pilot of an airliner coming through Lytmun PAN. On . plear day- and from five of thousand 'feet up, the run- way a visible for note thing like 30 miles out.

Jutting nearly 8,000 feet the Into Hunghom Bay, runway will Pr opened for normal dally schedules in the first two

in September.

Right: From the other end of the runway, coming through the North- west

approaches the Fowlson Peninsula, this is the view a pilot will have of the runway looking out to Lyemun Pass,

weeks

over

It is expected that only 16 per ocul of all-ndrorum.fi the now strip will have to fly over Kowloon, most

fights coming (hrough · Lyemun Psas,

Night · flying la noi ex- pected to begin until May next year when Anal nđ- Justments аго made to lighting and radar-equip» -ment,

Nearing the Bolusi touchdown the plot to-In lanch with the Central

·Tower by Ground Control · Approach radar. This * gives him height and ap- proach, check, by zelfion