Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) has reported that its February passenger traffic grew by 4.9% to 5.7m, while flight movements increased by 4.5% to 32,625 during the month.

 

Airport Authority Hong Kong said that growth was mostly thanks to a 16% rise in Hong Kong resident travel compared with January 2015, with passenger numbers to and from Southeast Asia and Japan showing the biggest increases.

 

IN PRAISE OF TECHNOLOGY

Commenting, Executive Director of Airport Operations of Airport Authority Hong Kong C K Ng said: “To enhance the travel experience for HKIA’s passengers we strive to provide customer-centric services by leveraging the latest technology, including the introduction of the ‘HKG My Flight’ mobile application in 2013 that provides airport information, real-time flight status and more.”

 

 

He added: “With the application of iBeacon technology, passengers using the ‘HKG My Flight App’ can receive push notifications of airport information, including dining and shopping offers and promotions at the airport.

 

“While arrays of initiatives are in the pipeline, we will continue exploring the application of different technologies in daily operations, aiming to enhance mobility, automation, efficiency and convenience for passengers,” added Ng.

 

He said HKIA is also delighted that ‘HKG My Flight’ recently won the Gold Award in the Best Location-based Marketing Category at the Mob-Ex Awards 2016 organised by Marketing magazine.

 

 

Having said that, there was no technology available to help halt the decline in cargo throughput for February, which was mainly attributed to a 23% year-on-year drop in exports. AAHK added that the fall in cargo volume was also partially due to the industrial action at ports on the US west coast in the first quarter of 2015.

 

In the first two months of 2016, HKIA handled 11.6m passengers and 67,820 flight movements, up 9.0% and 5.0% from the previous year respectively. Cargo traffic dropped 6% year-on-year to 619,000 tonnes.

 

On a rolling 12-month basis, HKIA handled 69.5m passengers and 409,255 flight movements, marking year-on-year increases of 8.4% and 3.8%, respectively.