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$141.5 billion (US$18 billion) system would open on November 28, boosting capacity by half to 120 million passengers and 10 million 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.