Delays to Hong Kong’s new air traffic control system could lead to more cancelled flights
Source tells Post new system may not go live on Sunday as planned, prompting concerns that reduced flight schedule may go on longer than expected
Hong Kong’s controversial new air traffic control system is set to plunge airlines and the city’s international airport into fresh chaos as the final commissioning to an upgraded flight radar system this weekend is set to be delayed, the Post can reveal.
Aviation authorities have confirmed a new navigation system, which has been several months in the planning, and was scheduled to go live this Sunday, faces technical issues just days before the new system goes live without backup.
In recent days, flight radar screens have frozen and malfunctioned on controllers. The Civil Aviation Department confirmed “isolated incidents” of display degradation but insisted flight safety was not affected.
The situation may become problematic after the regulator and Airport Authority had ordered a reduction of flights scheduled for a month lasting from October 30 to November 26 to accommodate the new operating system. Therefore, there is uncertainty as to whether a fresh delay could extend the reduction of flights, clipping the wings of airlines and stifling Hong Kong’s connectivity as an international aviation hub.
The suspension of 2,520 flights is the cost of switching from out-of-date and unreliable technology to an over-budget and much delayed new system.
