Hong Kong should open up new routes, not worry about airport overcapacity: industry experts

Hong Kong should be proactive in opening up new flight routes and destinations, experts have said, brushing off concerns that there could be an oversupply of airport capacity following the opening of the city’s three-runway system. Authorities had announced on Tuesday that the HK$141.5b (US$18b) system would open on November 28, boosting capacity by half to 120m passengers and 10m tonnes of cargo annually. Responding to concerns that there could be an excess supply of airport capacity, lawmaker and Airport Authority’s 3RS and Works Committee chairman Lo Wai-kwok said on Wednesday that Hong Kong should not focus on the current traffic. “The most important thing is we have to prepare ourselves. The passenger traffic is obviously increasing in a gradual manner,” he told a radio programme. “We should not simply wait for others to come. We should utilise our strengths to increase the number of destinations.” Lo suggested destinations in the Middle East, as Hong Kong had recently been exploring business opportunities in the region. “We do not have to be too worried about when the passenger traffic will return to pre-pandemic levels,” he added. The Airport Authority said in February that passenger traffic was expected to fully return to the pre-pandemic level, or around 70m, by the end of this year. But an update in September revealed the figure to be 39m passengers for the first three quarters of 2024, well short of official estimates. The central government has called on Hong Kong officials to develop the city into a world-class international aviation hub, as outlined in Beijing’s latest five-year national plan.<br/>