TNAG-1062-FCO40-1312-Replacement-airport-for-Hong-Kong-1981 — Page 32

THE PILOT AIRPORT PLAN

Before examining the pilot scheme from specific view- points, it is worthwhile to take a general look at the rationale for its selection.

The Consultants were instructed that the objective of the airport was to provide for all of the air transport systems needs of Hong Kong until the planning horizon of 1995, and as far beyond that time as can reasonably be expected. Based on forecast demand for air services, the airport would, therefore, have to serve 24.5 million annual passenger movements and nearly 1.2 million tonnes of cargo throughput - generating about 153,000 movements on the runway system in the design year. Only a few air terminals now experience traffic levels of this magnitude. However, it must be noted that the air transport system of the 1980s will be a markedly different system from that of the 1970s.

The task of developing a suitable airport layout had to be performed within the constraints of the terrain surround- ing the site, the need to reduce land reclamation, and the requirement to plan an economically feasible airport, all within the context of the changing nature of the air transport system. These constraints limited the variety of configurations that could be explored. At least two runways would be required at some point, and in future years, they would have to be operated with a degree of independence. As the studies proceeded, it became evident that it would be advantageous to develop a scheme that could be staged in its development so that a single runway could be constructed in the early phase of development capable of traffic acceptance rates well beyond those possible at Kai Tak. Future expansion decisions could then be deferred.

The Consultants and the CAD together explored an extensive series of alternative layouts during the joint working sessions. Figures 6 and 7 (next pages) illustrate the range of options examined in the first two sessions. In the end, a selection rationale was applied to several alternatives using numerous weighted and ranked criteria. The scheme selected by the CAD at the close of the second working session was modified and further devel- oped in the final phases of the Consultancy.

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