City sees arrivals hit record, welcomes 50 millionth visitor

A recovering economy and a depreciating Hong Kong dollar pushed visitor arrivals, flight passenger volumes and cargo tonnage to record high levels this year.

The number of visitors broke through 32 million during the first 11 months of 2010 - surpassing that of the whole of last year. The Airport Authority also saw the 50 millionth passenger land at Chek Lap Kok airport on Christmas Day.

The figures reinforced desperate calls for the construction of a third runway, with a think tank saying Chek Lap Kok would have to turn away flights by 2017 if passenger volume grew annually by only 6.5 per cent. That projection already takes into account enhancement measures to increase capacity.

The authority's chief executive Stanley Hui Hon-chung said a plan on the airport's future - which includes the feasibility of building a third runway - would be released for public consultation in six months.

'We will unveil in early 2011 a midfield development project that will result in a new passenger concourse and 20 additional parking stands by 2015,' Hui said. There would also be a master plan to outline the airport's aviation demands and development needs over the next 20 years.

Mainlanders continued to fuel the robust growth in Hong Kong's tourism as more than 20.4 million visitors crossed the border between January and November this year, a jump of 26.7 per cent over a year ago.