Several weeks ago, the Airport Authority (AA) invited the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Association (HKETA) to visit Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA). I, as president of the HKETA, was also in the delegation. The AA gave a presentation on its daily operations and future development plans, focusing on the construction of the airport's third runway.

The delegation benefited from the abundant information provided and we came off with a deeper knowledge of HKIA's complicated and advanced managing system. We are hence proud to have such an almost impeccable airport with it being chosen as the world's best airport for more than 50 times. At the same time, we're also aware of the fact that construction of the third runway cannot be further delayed given that the capacity of the existing runways is nearing saturation, while other airports in region are becoming more competitive.

According to the AA, it will soon submit an environmental assessment report to the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) after a careful study and, after public consultations, the advisory council on the environment will hold discussions and integrate views from all parties so as to present a revised report to the EPD. The whole process, if conducted without a hitch, should take at least five months. However, if any dispute or accident, such as a judicial review, were to arise, commencement work on the project would be uncertain.

A recent public opinion survey suggested that nearly three-fourths of Hong Kong people support the building of a third runway as it would stimulate the city's economic development and long-term competitiveness by creating a wealth of job opportunities. The AA predicts that by 2030, with the third runway in place, HKIA would create about HK$167 billion in revenue, accounting for 4.6 percent of the city's GDP. By then, the number of people directly employed would increase from more than 65,000 in 2013 to about 141,000, and the number of indirectly employed would rise to 199,000.

It's undeniable that deliberations on the environmental assessment report are necessary, but I hope the public can consider the report as it stands without deliberately creating obstacles and wasting time and public resources.

Having said that, we still need to worry about the airport's ability to accommodate the growing number of tourists to Hong Kong. Statistics show that, by 2030, the air passenger volume in South China would increase to more than 390 million person times, while the five major airports in the region - in Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Macao - can only deal with 290 million people in total. There would be the question of how to accommodate an extra 100 million passengers.

When Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying visited Guangdong province last month, he proposed expanding cooperation between the airport authorities in Hong Kong and Shenzhen during a tour of Shenzhen International Airport (SIA). The fact is that HKIA now covers more than 130 overseas destinations while SIA covers only 110 domestic destinations. These preponderances can be added up to form a cutting edge if such cooperation can be realized. I believe it's an approach towards a win-win situation for both airports to expand their capacities.

At present, there are coaches and ships shuffling between the two airports, but in the event of huge traffic jams or adverse weather conditions, transit passengers might be affected. Such cooperation, therefore, has to be strengthened provided the distance between the two airports remains at 40 kilometers, and transport and transit formalities should be adequate to ensure that passengers won't miss their flights. The HKSAR and Shenzhen governments have already proposed the construction of a high-speed railway directly linking the two airports. It would then take only 25 minutes for passengers to have a reliable, convenient and speedy transfer to connecting flights. The authorities should also simplify transit procedures as much as possible.

The author is vice-president of the Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong

(HK Edition 04/25/2014 page9)