page_title: Kai Tak Airport
section_title: Operations
hierarchical_section_title: Kai Tak Airport / Operations
caption_attribution_description: English: Kai Tak Airport. Photo taken by myself (User:Sl) on 2 July 1998. The buildings in the background are in Kowloon Bay and Kwun Tong. 中文（繁體）‎: 啟德機場，在1998年7月2日拍攝。
context_page_description: Kai Tak Airport was the international airport of Hong Kong from 1925 until 1998. Officially known as Hong Kong International Airport from 1954 to 6 July 1998, it is often referred to as Hong Kong International Airport, Kai Tak, or simply Kai Tak and Kai Tak International Airport, to distinguish it from its successor, which is often referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport, located at the islands of Chek Lap Kok and Lam Chau, located 30 kilometres to the west.
  Because of the geography of the area positioning the airport with water on all sides of the runway, with Kowloon City's residential apartment complexes and 2000+ft mountains to the north-east of the airport, aircraft could not fly over the mountains and quickly drop in for a final. Instead, aircraft had to fly above Victoria Harbour and Kowloon City, passing north of Mong Kok's Bishop Hill. After passing Bishop Hill, pilots would see Checkerboard Hill with a large red and white checkerboard pattern. Once the pattern was sighted and identified, aircraft made a low-altitude 47° right-hand turn, ending with a short final and touchdown.
caption: A Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-300 landing at Kai Tak Airport runway 13
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