shd9

Unfortunalty all KA flights to OKA have been fully booked the following two days. I think your best bet is to ask for a reroute (even on another carrier if needed).

lionelhutz

What is with KLM landing right in the middle of a T10?

Add them to my list of airlines I'll never fly.

Ausriver

Would CX normally cover for accommodations if I caught up at HKG during weather like this?

i.e. arriving yesterday, transit for around 24 hours. booked myself a hotel for last night. However, need to stay 1-2 extra days due to flight cancellation?

somemale

post deleted. wrong information.

christep

Looked fine to me - basically no crosswind, just a strong headwind. Their groundspeed was hence rather low on landing and they needed less than half the runway. Kudos to the pilots for judging the situation on its merits.

So by all means take your ignorance elsewhere, but I guess that must be becoming a pretty short list... (no MH because they got shot down, no KE ditto, no QF because they had an engine blow out, no BA because they landed short at LHR, etc)

GE90-115B

Maybe it's because that flight is operated by the B747-400 which can withstand more crosswinds than other aircraft and the captain thought it is safe enough to attempt a landing. Very few flights at HKG are operated by 744 these days, which could explain why no other flight has attempted a landing during T10 today.

I've read about a time at SFO where winds were particularly strong that night, and all other aircraft such as the 340, 777 etc. had to be grounded, but CX873 operated by 744 at the time had no problems departing on time.

bart simpson

Do CX still carry passengers connecting through HKG? I remember once in the past when weather in HK is terrible, they rerouted everyone transiting through HKG and give priority to those travelling to/from HK only.

This brings in a few benefits:
1) Since >50% of CX passengers now transit through HKG, it opens up a lot of space
2) Connecting passengers may arrive destination on time or even earlier
3) passengers are dealt with at the counter during check-in so as to reduce pressure on the hotlines

However this may have cost CX a lot extra to accommodate them on other airlines

brunos

Had a colleague on that flight. He said that landing was good. The approach was turbulent though.

Ausriver

Correct. A friend of mine was flying PVG-HKG-JFK today and got rebooked to PVG-JFK directly. It was the actual flight she preferred and at the time of booking CX was cheaper so she booked with CX. She is very happy with the arrangement.

ermen

Some commentary on the decision to land in the SCMP

According to data from the Observatory analysed by Hong Kong pilot Jeremy Tam Man-ho, flight KL887 was facing headwinds when the pilots were trying to land, but those winds were not unfavourable for landing.

“It would have been difficult to land if the flight was facing crosswinds. The real problem was after landing the plane – you needed people to get the air bridge ready and open the door. If the wind is too strong it is possible you can’t even open the door,” said Tam, who is also a Civic Party member of Hong Kong’s legislature.

Wind speed over the airport’s airspace was 80km/h to 113km/h, which Tam said was strong. But he said what really determined whether a pilot could land a plane was the direction of the wind. He added that visibility had been 1.7km, which was “acceptable”. Visibility on the runways was between 500 metres and 800 metres, Tam said.

“There was no reason not to try and land. It was not a rash decision,” he said.
Evacuation from Tai O village as streets turned to rivers after Typhoon Hato hits Hong Kong

KLM said in a statement that the pilots had “no problems landing the plane” and the aircraft had been filled up with extra fuel in case of any diversion to another airport.

“Safety is our highest priority, we never compromise on that,” the airline said. “The KLM flight landed before the wind reached its peak.”



http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/h...flight-backlog

1010101

Until yesterday it wasn't even predicted as a typhoon, just a tropical storm. It intensified very quickly.

boybi

No problem with the ability of the aircraft to land at such conditions, but how about the safety of the ground crew directing the aircraft to the air bridges? Isn't the wind speed too dangerous for the crew to be on the tarmac?

bart simpson

Agree. Even the plane landed, I don't think ground services were provided at all - no bridge, no luggage, no fueling etc.

christep

At HKG there is no need for batmen directing planes to the main gates - they have an electronic guidance system.

And really! I grew up by the sea in the UK, today wasn't that exceptional, in general.

brunos

Indeed and 80 to 110km per hr is nothing extraordinary in many coastal regions.
HK has become so precaution-minded, for legal/media reasons, that it is starting to be ridiculous IMO.

I can understand the risk of the ocean overflowing, as it did today, or a branch falling from a tree, or a typical-HK scaffolding breaking. But if a jetway cannot operate with 100km wind or staff cannot unload bags, then there is a real problem with the airport.