More than a decade has passed since the former Hong Kong International Airport in Kai-Tak was closed for business on July 6, 1998, and was replaced by an excellent new facility built on reclaimed land in Chek-pá-Koke on Lantau Island. Two airports are like chalk and cheese; one futuristic, the other was long ago sold by date; but there are still many who mourn the demise of the old place. Many of them are pilots who readily recall the adrenaline rush when they sent their planes along the Instrument Guidance System (IGS) just a few hundred feet above the densely populated Kowloon apartment buildings to the infamous orange and white painted chessboard. When it was in sight, and the plane was correctly leveled at a height of only 675 feet (206 meters), a sharp turn of 47 degrees was required to take the plane through a wide curve before being leveled at a distance of 150 feet (46 meters) from the runway .
At night, a unique lighting system, installed precisely at a distance of 400 feet on the rooftops and specially built portals, sent pilots to the runway center line. Since the final approach was inevitable, the distance between the lights was reduced to 200 feet. The need to use lights to guide the pilots in this way provided a ban on the flashing of neon signs across Hong Kong to avoid distraction of incoming pilots. The weather was often bad; typhoons, microburst and heavy side winds added to the workload of the pilots, and in many ways Kai Tak was a major accident awaiting his service. Several strange planes ended up in the shallow water of Kowloon Bay, and it was indeed an accident that no commercial airliner ever descended on Kowloon's crowded dwellings or missed the turn to finish plowing at Leo Rock. This was mainly due to the extremely good aviation skills, excellent air traffic control and, more specifically, in the early days, an amazing element of luck. The airport certainly had its share of accidents, and many aviation enthusiasts will see the video on You Tube. which shows how Korean Air Boeing 747 came to a crash during an extreme weather landing.
Mr. Kai and Mr. Tak
The airport’s history began in the 1920s when two businessmen, Sir Ho Kai (trained doctor) and Mr. Au Tak * (owner of the photographic business) created Kai Tack Land Investment Company Ltd to return the land they intended to use to build new at home. The project failed mainly because few people wanted to live on land that was still infected with mosquitoes. The restored area remained vacant until the government seized it. In November 1924, the Royal Navy's HMS Pegasus arrived at Victoria Harbor with four Fairey IIID hydroplanes, which were used for aerial photography. It was a flood of aerial reconnaissance missions over Mires and Hayes bays, the famous ghosts of the notorious pirates who plundered navigation in the South China Sea. Sir Reginald Stubbs flew on one of these aircraft and thus became the first governor of Hong Kong, who examined his territory from a seaplane.
Obviously, the need for a military facility in Hong Kong, but in accordance with the Washington Agreement, 1021 Britons were not allowed to create a base east of Singapore. The British government openly found a solution by building an aerodrome for civilian use on this site, which can also be used when visiting Fleet Air Arm aircraft. In January 1925, the Americans dared to devil Harry W Abbott, having received permission to launch a flight school on the site, which he called Kowloon City Field. On Lunar New Year, he announced the start of his school, flying to Curtiss Jenny with fire crackers attached to his steering wheel. But the fireworks couldn't light up, and it looked like a bad shui by the onlookers. His colleague, Sino-American pilot Henry Yee Young, conducted a series of aerobatic work before Abbott returned to the air with Richard Earnshaw on board, which made the parachute decent. But everything went wrong, and Earnshaw landed in the harbor, entangled in his parachute and drowned. A series of incidents continued to judge Abbott, and by August he was broken and forced to sell his plane.
The Royal Air Force occupied the airfield on March 10, 1927, and apart from the Japanese occupation, they remained in some form during the war until 1993. At first, the publication was not popular due to the pungent odors emitted by local nullah (open drain), which competed with the smell of fat from a plant located nearby. Sharp zero continued to greet passengers on board arriving planes until the last days at the airport.
On November 18, 1928, a flight of short-Southampton aircraft touched the harbor and was tied to special berths in Kowloon Bay. It was the famous Far Eastern flight of the Captain Cave-Brown-Cave group, which flew from Singapore to Australia, which later evolved as a 205 squadron. To pull the plane out of the water, it was necessary to build a concrete slap, and a steam crane was used to lift the aircraft to the land. Things began to develop, and the Legislative Council set the money for improvement and maintenance at the facility. By 1930, the runway was leveled and turned, and the metal suspension was completed to replace the matte designs that were adopted to collect fire. In September, Mr. AJR Moss arrived from London to take over the post of aerodrome commander and then his assistant Eric Nelson five years later to influence the development of the aerodrome.
Imperial link
In 1932, members of the flight club were drawn into a disagreement, which forced him to close. Vaughan Fowler, the head of the commander of the Far Eastern Aviation Company, suggested reforming the club, and he became a Far Eastern flight school with a fleet of one Avro Avian and three Avro-cadets. Employees of ten Chinese, ten English and forty-two engineers worked in the business; indicating how the interest in aviation is progressing. Two years later, the airfield was further developed with the addition of a sea wall, an ambient fence and a ramp for sea planes. Work was also completed on locating the RAF on the east side of the old airstrip, where buildings on a dirt road were identified that led to the fishing village of Leigh Ut Moon. They had a command view of the sandy beach and stood at a height of 30 meters above the airfield on land, where later in the east of the airport the barriers of high-rise apartments would prevail. There were also plans for the runway.
In 1928, the governments of Great Britain and Hong Kong promised to spend £ 200,000 to turn Kai Tak into a modern facility. In London, the colony was still given only minor attention, and until 1935 it required the construction of a civilian control tower and offices, as well as the first fire engine. On March 25, 1929, the long-awaited first commercial flight arrived when De Havilland DH 86 G-ACWD Diana Class # Dorado & from Imperial Airways. This led to the launch of the first feeder service from Penang and Saigon, which was connected with a delayed UK flight to Australia (Empire Route), which left London on March 14. The pilot pilot pilots, Captain J Lock, commanded when he reported that he saw three sharks basking in the waters of the South China Sea under his plane when he was near the colony. Passing through an area known as Magazine Gap at about 11:30, a magnificent vista of Victoria Harbor opened before him, and he was accompanied as he approached by a squadron of aircraft from HMS Hermes. Waiting for the flight was the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Andrew Caldecott, and 200 VIPs who expected to greet only the crew when the plane stopped. There was an element of surprise when the first commercial passenger ever to land in Kai Tak left the plane. Ong I-Lim, a witty amateur pilot, was squeezing between 16 bags of Her Majesty and sent his plane from Kuala Lumpur to Penang specifically for the flight.
The DH 86 Imperial Airways visited the colony before Captain Armstrong flew an airplane in a series of test flights the previous year. The people of Hong Kong followed the course of these flights for some reasonable time, and when the bad weather rated the first one, Armstrong, not wanting to disappoint people or risk losing the precious mail contract, flew 1852 miles (2,980 km) from Penang in one day (16 September). When the route was open to regular traffic, it reduced the 34-day voyage between England and Hong Kong to ten days by air. Later, when an agreement was reached with Siam (now Thailand), the shooting route through Bangkok shortened another day and a half from the trip. By the time Imperial Airways began working with class C class aircraft to Singapore, the 15,000-mile (24,140 km) route was reduced to 5 days from a DH 86, providing a final link between Singapore and Kai Tak. Today, due to the progress made in establishing migratory rights, shorter routes in Russia, Siberia and China have significantly reduced the distance between London and Hong Kong to about 6,000 miles (9 856 km), which modern aircraft can cover non-stop than twelve hours .
Between the wars, many well-known long distances and world pioneer champions landed at Kai Tak, although regular commercial services were slow. During 1932, Compagnie Français Air Orient intended to link Hong Kong with the Marseille-Saigon service, but plans were discarded. Two years ago, the Chinese-German airline Hansa Hansa also offered a mail route between Kai Tak and Europe, but this idea fell into the background, but later expanded its Peiping (Beijing) -Canton service to Hong Kong on June 29, 1937, using universal Junkers JU -52. Then, on August 10, 1938, Air France arrived from Paris in their three-wheeled Dewoitine 338 F-AQBF City of Vientiane. six days before staging a new recording between Hanoi and Hong Kong for 3 hours and 20 minutes.
In February 1930, Pan American Airways posted a 45 percent stake in the creation of the China National Aviation Corporation (CNAC) in collaboration with the Ministry of Communications of China. On October 8, they opened a flying boat service linking Shanghai, Wenchu, Fuzhou, Xiamen, Swatou, and Canton with Hong Kong, using the Sikorsky S-38. Two years later, they flew along the route twice a week using Douglas Dolphin amphibians, later presenting the Douglas DC-3 as passenger traffic increased.
Pan Am very much wanted to add Hong Kong to his trans-Pacific operations, and on April 28, 1937, this was achieved thanks to the arrival of the aircraft Sikorsky S042B (NC16734). Hong Kong Clipper & Extended Service from San Francisco and Manila. By that time, the Japanese were already overtaking parts of China, and by July Beijing had fallen. As a result, commercial flights over China became inherently dangerous and were regularly exposed to fire from the Japanese. CNAC bravely continued to fly, and in 1938 the Douglas DC-2 company was shot down near Macau, killing all 14 on board. The aircraft was returned to Kai Tak by a barge, repaired and returned to service. In October 1940 and in May 1941, two more DC 2s were shot down during the flight of the Chunking-Kunming-Hong Kong service. On December 12, 1941, the final pre-war flight of the airline took off from Kai Tak, as the Japanese were preparing to bomb the airport. The British military had already declared Hong Kong undefended, and when the invasion against the invasion began on Monday, December 8, 1941, the RAF had only three Wildebeests, based in Kai Tak, and two Supermarine Walrus marine amphibians tied to the shore. The airport continued to suffer from the destruction of six parked airliners and the Pan Am Hong Kong Clipper & which was anchored. Four more liners miraculously survived from a bomb that went through the roof of the hanger, but did not explode. Over the next two days, CNAC aircraft tirelessly evacuated airport personnel to China, while RAF troops moved to Hong Kong Island before the British surrendered at Christmas. The Japanese took the Kai Tak for military use, but the flights carried out by the Great Japanese Air Lines that served the airport in peacetime continued. The troops built two asphalt runways with a length of about 4,266 feet (1,300 meters). Kai So many times bombed since 1942 by 1945 by American troops with solid success, but it was considered inappropriate to make any lengthy attempts to remove the occupying forces.
Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, and the British regained their presence. Although the air hand of Fleet Air Grumman Hellcats and Avengers flew to the airport on August 29, the runways were still inundated with bombers and wreckage of destroyed enemy aircraft. By mid-September, the RAF began to restore presence with a squadron of Supermarine Spitfires, and by Christmas four squadrons began to operate. Sunderland and Douglas DC-3 Dakotas short flight boats were added to the mix of planes using Hong Kong. British corporation Overseas Airways (BOAC) announced its intention to establish its services for flying boats from Hythe to the colony, which were detained at the beginning of the war. These services, using the Hythe Class Short Sunderland, began on August 24, 1946. During the same year, a major typhoon struck the area, which destroyed several parked planes. This was followed quickly by a Douglas Dakota military aircraft that crashed into Kowloon Tong after takeoff.
During most of the post-war period, the RAF squadrons brought with them a multitude of aircraft, including de Havilland Venoma, hunter hunters, and various types of helicopters that were used to perform a number of duties, including search and rescue. The British military also held back a threat from the Chinese Communist forces in the Pearl River Delta in the late 1940s and played a role in helping in the riots in Hong Kong in 1967. Since 1993, the Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force, the Hong Kong Air Force Corps, and then the Government Flight Service were located at the airport. The Hong Kong Aviation Club also had its own facility at the corner of the airport, close to the threshold of runway 13, which in subsequent years provided an interesting perspective for enthusiasts.
Cathay Pacific and events after the war
In October 1945, former CNAC pilot Roy Farrell, who blew up the notorious eastern Himalayas, between China, Burma and India during the war bought the aging Douglas C-47, which he converted for civilian use as a DC-3. He flew out of the United States via a circular route to Shanghai, where he met his old friend, the former Australian military ace Sid-Kantzou. Friends formed the airline, which in February 1946 began to carry out cargo flights from Shanghai. The aircraft was registered with VR-HAD and named Betsy &, and the name they adopted by Cathay Pacific Airways became a legend. A second DC-3 (VR-HDB), named “Nikki” was added, and the company quickly became extremely profitable, causing awe among its Chinese rivals. The situation has become unhealthy. in the old Chinese city of Farrell and Kantzuw saw the wisdom of moving their operations to British-controlled Hong Kong. After an advertisement for flight attendants, Cathay Pacific launched test passenger flights to Manila, Bangkok and Singapore. A year later, five more DC-3s and two ABC 5a Consolidated Catalina PBY amphibians of the 5th year were added as more destinations were added. Catalina, VR-HDT. Miss Macau. when she was subjected to the first act of air piracy. On July 17, 1948, four Chinese were accused of taking control of the plane between Macau and Hong Kong, believing that a gold bar was being transported. It was said that one of the hijackers was aware that he was flying the same type of aircraft, but everything went wrong when the fight began, and captain Dale Kramer was shot in the head. The plane went out of control and crashed into the Pearl River Delta with a crew of three and 23 passengers on board. One of the hijackers was the only survivor. On June 15, 1972, another incident occurred when a bomb aboard one of the smuggling companies 880 destroyed an aircraft over Vietnam.
In 1948, one of the “noble” British trading companies, John Pig and Sons invested in Cathay Pacific. Farrell sold his stake in the airline and returned to Texas in 1948, and Kantsov resigned in 1951. Air transport is essentially and is currently one of the leading operators in the world. Swire's main rivals, Jardine Matheson, owned Hong Kong Airlines, which also operated from Kai Tak. BOAC invested in this airline to link Chinese cities with its international routes, but in 1959 Hong Kong Airlines merged with Cathay Pacific. Авиакомпания также создала высоко оцененное техническое обслуживание, Гонконгскую авиационную инженерную компанию (HAECO) в Кай Так, и в последние годы она стала крупным акционером двух других авиакомпаний в Гонконге; Dragonair и Air Hong Kong.
С войны структура Кай Так продолжала меняться, чтобы соответствовать быстрым требованиям постоянно меняющейся авиационной отрасли. В течение 1950-х годов в аэропорту наблюдался значительный рост региональных и международных операций. Многие международные перевозчики, включая BOAC, Pan American Airways, Qantas, Air India, Northwest и Canadian Pacific, добавили Гонконг в свои графики. Douglas DC-4 и DC-6, Boat B-377 Stratocruisers, Bristol Britannias и Lockheed Constellations были постоянными посетителями, и с турбо-реквизитами возникла необходимость в более длинной взлетно-посадочной полосе. В 1958 году на рекультивированных землях на высоте 16 футов (4,87 м) над заливом Коулун была открыта новая взлетно-посадочная полоса протяженностью 8 340 футов (2,542 метра) х 200 футов (60,96 метра) на высоте около 750 футов (228,60 м) на северо-западной оконечности и 300 футов (91,44 метра) на стороне, обращенной к воде. Более 3000 рабочих были обработаны по проекту, который начался в январе 1956 года, но был завершен к моменту прибытия первого рейса 31 августа 1958 года. Также были добавлены параллельные такси и новое здание пассажирского терминала. На официальном открытии взлетно-посадочной полосы 12 сентября комета 4 BOAC, специально прилетевшая в Гонконг с аэродрома де Хэвилленд в Хатфилде, стала первым реактивным авиалайнером, когда-либо приземляющимся в аэропорту. К концу 1958 года прибыло 4 773 самолета, и 19 авиакомпаний выполняли 184 рейса в неделю в Кай Так. 17 июля 1959 года Cathay Pacific DC-3 официально открыла ночные операции в аэропорту после того, как было установлено дополнительное освещение.
В 1960 году Pan Am вылетел первым B-707 в Кай Так, а затем в том же году первым DC-8, которым управляли Japan Air Lines. Камень прибыл, когда первый B-747, Pan Am & Clipper One & приземлился 11 апреля 1970 года, свидетелем которого стала огромная толпа. Прибытие широкой эры приобрело дополнительное давление для дальнейшего увеличения длины взлетно-посадочной полосы. К 1974 году расширение расширило это до 11 130 футов (3,390 метра), а дополнительные налоги, выключения и парковки и новая пожарная станция были добавлены. Движение увеличилось до такой суммы, что к 1995-96 годам 61 авиакомпания, использующая Kai Tak, вносила 2850 пассажирских и грузовых рейсов и 230 нерегулярных рейсов в неделю. 78 процентов этих рейсов были широколетными самолетами, и это увеличило количество пассажиров, проходящих через терминал, до 28 миллионов. Этот объект также стал вторым самым загруженным грузовым аэропортом мира, перевозившим 1,48 млн тонн. С 31 запланированным движением в час Кай Так достиг максимальной мощности, и сотни дополнительных запросов на посадочные места должны были быть отклонены. Было очевидно, что новый аэропорт был необходим, и когда он открылся для бизнеса в 6 часов утра с прибытием Cathay Pacific CX889 прямо из Нью-Йорка, это было не раньше времени.
* По какой-то причине & # 39; был сброшен из названия аэропорта, хотя он появился как Кай Так на оригинальных воротах.
Боб Блаффилд
