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Through the co-operation platform of the Pearl River Delta (PRD) Region Air Traffic Management Planning and Implementation Working Group, the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) of Hong Kong today (October 20) reached an agreement with the Air Traffic Management Bureau of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) in which new air routes for the eastern part of the Mainland and an associated additional handover point between the Hong Kong and Guangzhou Flight Information Regions (FIRs) called LELIM would be established for flights operating between Hong Kong, Macau and the eastern part of the Mainland with effect from January 7, 2016.
At present, flights departing from the Hong Kong or Macau airports, as well as those from Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand transiting the Hong Kong FIR, to and from the eastern part of the Mainland are going into and out of the Mainland FIRs on one single air route. The increase in air traffic volume led to the overloading of the existing flight path while the busy airspace also increased the complexity in flight handling.
The launching of new air routes for the eastern part of the Mainland was one of the key enhancement measures set out by the PRD Region Air Traffic Management Planning and Implementation Plan (Version 2.0). To achieve it, the CAD has been in close liaison with the CAAC and has held several co-ordination meetings to exchange views on technical arrangements. This measure aims to optimise the efficiency of the air routes for the eastern part of the Mainland, on the premise that the safety, order and efficiency of its implementation can be safeguarded.
The introduction of the new air routes and handover point will split the flights departing from Hong Kong and Macau, and those transiting the Hong Kong FIR. This will help ease the traffic load of the existing air routes. Furthermore, this may enhance the airspace capacity and air traffic flow, as well as the air traffic management efficiency to cater for the ongoing growth in the volume of air traffic between Hong Kong and the Mainland.
The CAD, as in the past, will continue to proactively promote exchanges on PRD region air traffic management co-operation. It will also study and implement other measures to further rationalise the airspace management in the region to cope with the rapid growth in the volume of air traffic in future.
Ends/Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Issued at HKT 20:05
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