XN000022-1976-11-07 — Page 1

PRH 7

HK 香港政府 GIS 新聞處

DAILY INFORMATION BULLETIN

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 1976

FLIGHT TESTS FOR AIR SAFETY ******

A SPECIAL AIRCRAFT HAS BEEN DOING +ACROBATICS+ AROUND THE HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT -- ALL FOR THE CAUSE OF AIR SAFETY.

THE PLANE, A SABRE-LINER BELONGING TO THE UNITED STATES FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION (FAA), HAS BEEN HERE TO CARRY OUT A PRE-ARRANGED FLIGHT PROGRAMME TO RECORD AND CALIBRATE THE ACCURACY OF HONG KONG'S VARIOUS GROUND NAVIGATIONAL AID SYSTEMS.

IT IS EQUIPPED WITH HIGHLY SPECIALISED AND SOPHISTICATED EQUIPMENT FOR THE RECORDING AND ANALYSIS OF RADIO SIGNALS OF NAVIGATIONAL AIDS AND FOR EXACT POSITION DETERMINING PURPOSES, WHICH SOMETIMES REQUIRE THE PLANE TO TAKE STEEP CLIMBS, SUDDEN DIPS, OR MAINTAIN AN ULTRA STRAIGHT AND STEADY FLIGHT PATH.

MR. AU MAN-HO, ELECTRONICS ENGINEERS OF THE CIVIL AVIATION DEPARTMENT, SAID TODAY THAT REGULAR FLIGHT CHECKS WERE ESSENTIAL TO CONFIRM THE STABILITY OF SIGNALS PASSED TO AIRBORNE AIRCRAFT.

+EQUIPMENT PERFORMANCE LIMITS AND TOLERANCES ARE SET DOWN IN INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS, WHICH ALSO PRESCRIBE THAT RADIO NAVIGATION AIDS TO INTERNATIONAL AIRCRAFT BE SUBJECTED TO PERIODIC GROUND AND FLIGHT CHECKS, HE SAID.

MR. AU POINTED OUT THAT SUCH FLIGHT CHECKS COULD ONLY BE CARRIED OUT BY SPECIALLY-EQUIPPED AIRCRAFT WITH A SPECIALLY TRAINED PILOT AND FLIGHT CREW.

+FOR THIS PURPOSE, THE CIVIL AVIATION DEPARTMENT HAS A CONTRACT WITH THE UNITED STATES FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION FOR THE PERIODIC AND SPECIAL FLIGHT CHECKING OF ALL THE DEPARTMENT'S NAVIGATION AID FACILITIES.

+THE FAA'S SABRE-LINER, BASED IN TOKYO, VISITS HONG KONG ONCE EVERY THREE MONTHS TO CHECK THE INSTRUMENTAL LANDING SYSTEM, DISTANCE MEASURING EQUIPMENT, THE PRECISION APPROACH RADAR, THE VISUAL APPROACH SLOPE INDICATOR, THE VHF OMNIDIRECTIONAL RAD 10 RANGE, NON-DIRECTIONAL RADIO BEACON, SURVEILLANCE RADAR AND VIDEO MAP OF RADAR.

+DURING THE FLIGHT CHECKS, THE RADIATION SIGNALS OF NAVIGATION AIDS ARE RECORDED EY THE AIRCRAFT FROM VARIOUS FLIGHT POSITIONS, HE SAID. THE RECORDINGS ARE ANALYSED, AND IF THE RESULTS ARE SATISFACTORY, THE AID IS THEN CERTIFIED SERVICEABLE.+

/HR. AU

Issued by Government Information Services, Beaconsfield House, Hong Kong. Tel: 5-233191