6 July: Chek Lap Kok Airport, Hong Kong

On this date in 1998 Hong Kong's Kai Tak Airport closed and the new Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok became operational.

1. Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok Airport is one of the busiest in the world (where it's placed in the hierarchy of busiest airport for cargo and passengers varies between sources). 56,057,751 passengers passed through it in 2012, and at peak hours it can handle 57 flights per hour.
2. The airport was built to replace the former Hong Kong International Airport, Kai Tak, which had reached capacity and couldn't handle the increasing amount of air traffic. One out of every three flights out of Kai Tak was delayed because there wasn't enough space for all the planes. The fact that the approach was over a densely populated area meant that there were restrictions on night flights, not to mention concerns about noise pollution affecting about 340,000 people during the day. I flew there once - you could literally see people hanging their washing out on the balconies of the tall apartment blocks as you flew past!
3. Something had to be done, so in 1974 the Civil Aviation and Public Works departments started looking into alternative sites for Hong Kong Airport. They decided on a small island called Chek Lap Kok, off Lantau Island. Siting the airport on an island meant flights could be re-routed away from the city and approach over the ocean instead, allowing the airport to operate around the clock.
4. The build the new airport they had to flatten two islands, Chek Lap Kok and Lam Chau, and reclaim 9.38 square kilometres (3.62 sq mi) of the adjacent seabed. The airport is 12.48-square-kilometre (3,080-acres/4.85 sq miles) in area, and increased the size of Hong Kong by 1%.
5. There was a rush to finish building it. Hong Kong was due to be handed back to China from Britain in 1997, and China wanted it mostly constructed by then, although an earlier report said that the earliest possible completion date wasn't until January 1998. Construction of the new airport began in 1991.
6. Tsing Ma Bridge, the main access to Lantau Island and the airport was opened in May 1997 by then Prime Minister, John Major. The airport itself opened to regular traffic on 6 July 1998 and on the same day, Kai Tak Airport closed. The official opening ceremony was a few days earlier on July 2, performed by President Jiang Zemin at noon. The first foreign visitor to fly in arrived the same day - United States President Bill Clinton aboard Air Force One.
7. The first commercial flight to arrive there was Cathay Pacific flight 889 which arrived at 06:25 Hong Kong Time.
8. The airport has two runways, both of which are 3,800 metres (12,500 ft) in length and 60 metres (200 ft) wide; 90 gates, and employs about 60,000 people.
9. The airport was designed by the architect Norman Foster.
10. It has won "World Airport of the Year" from Skytrax for 7 times in 10 years. Should you find yourself there waiting for a connecting flight there is lots to do. There is an Imax cinema, a virtual golf course and a spa as well as the usual restaurants and shopping. For a small fee you can visit a panoramic veiwing area and watch the planes or for a slightly bigger fee you can have a go on a flight simulator and virtually land a plane yourself.