Flight Paths
Design of Flight Paths
1. Hong Kong is small in size, hilly in topography and densely populated. It is not feasible to put flight paths to be completely clear of residential developments without compromising aviation safety, which is stringently regulated by the international aviation safety requirement. Nevertheless, all flight paths for the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) were developed through careful and comprehensive studies. In accordance with international standards and recommended practices, their development took into account various safety and operational factors including but not limited to runway direction, terrain environment, obstacle clearances, location of navigation aids, aircraft operating criteria, airspace coordination with nearby airports, aircraft noise and its potential impact on different stakeholders, etc. A balanced approach has been adopted in consideration of the above factors. The Civil Aviation Department is conscious of the noise impact that aircraft operations may have on the local communities and has implemented a number of aircraft noise mitigating measures. For details, please refer to Aircraft Noise page.
2. The Three-Runway System (3RS) commenced operations on 28 November 2024. At present, the HKIA has three runways (commonly called the North Runway, the Centre Runway and the South Runway) running northeast to southwest. Under normal circumstances, the 3RS at the HKIA is operated according to the primary mode of operation outlined in Hong Kong International Airport Master Plan 2030, i.e. the North Runway is dedicated to arrivals, the Centre Runway to departures, and the South Runway operates in mixed mode for both arrivals and departures. However, depending on the actual situation and operational needs (e.g. carrying out necessary maintenance works), the HKIA will be operated in dual runway mode or single runway mixed mode. Where maintenance works must take place to ensure safe operation, they are usually conducted during non-busy periods from late night to early morning to minimise impact on airport operation.
Arrivals
3. The direction used for aircraft landings primarily depends on the prevailing wind directions at the HKIA because, for aviation safety and operational needs, aircraft generally land into the wind. In general, when easterly winds prevail at the airport (which is common in the winter season), aircraft are arranged to approach the HKIA from the southwest over the water. When westerly winds prevail at the airport (which is common in the summer season), aircraft are arranged to approach the HKIA from the northeast, overflying individual areas (including Sai Kung, Ma On Shan, Sha Tin, Kwai Chung, Tsing Yi, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun (Siu Lam / Tai Lam Chung) etc.). For the arrival flight paths to the HKIA, please refer to the diagram in Appendix 
(PDF: 561KB)
Departures
4. The direction used for aircraft departures also primarily depends on the prevailing wind directions at the HKIA because, for aviation safety and operational needs, aircraft generally take off into the wind. In general, when easterly winds prevail at the airport (which is common in the winter season), aircraft are arranged to depart from the HKIA towards the northeast, depending on flight destinations, it may turn south over West Lamma Channel, or overfly individual areas (including Tuen Mun (Siu Lam / Tai Lam Chung)), and then fly over areas from Tsuen Wan North to Kowloon East at a relatively high altitude. When westerly winds prevail at the airport (which is common in the summer season), aircraft are arranged to depart from the HKIA towards the southwest direction over the water. For the departure flight paths from the HKIA, please refer to the map in Appendix (PDF: 561KB)
5. The diagram in Appendix (PDF: 561KB) shows the Standard Instrument Departure (SID) tracks followed by departing aircraft from the HKIA. The primary purpose of these SIDs is to enable the efficient transition of departing aircraft from the airport to the upper level airways. Pilots are required to follow these standard procedures unless being given alternative instructions by an air traffic controller (ATC). For the efficient management of limited airspace, ATC may give pilots a more direct route to their destination or a radar heading for separation from other traffic.
6. It should be noted that an aircraft in flight cannot follow a track precisely like a train running along a railway track. There are many factors that may affect the aircraft's flown track, such as the wind speed and direction relative to the aircraft's intended flight path, the performance characteristics of the aircraft, tolerances in navigational aids and different piloting skills and techniques, etc. In practice, the flown tracks may deviate to either side of the nominal center line shown in the map in Appendix (PDF: 561KB). Past studies have shown that the majority of aircraft follow the assigned routes within 1.5 km either side of the nominal center line.
