Commercial director of Airport Authority Hans Bakker says HKIA would improve its competitive edge and strive to be a high quality hub with the greatest critical mass in the Pearl River Delta

Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) must increase market space and create critical mass to maintain its competitive edge, according to commercial director of the Airport Authority Hans Bakker.

With the recent opening of Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou, southern China - with handling capacity of 25 million passengers a year and 1 million tonnes of cargo - Hong Kong inevitably faces many challenges to stay on top as a leading aviation hub.

The airline industry is capital-intensive and critical mass is an important component in airlines' decisions on where to fly, Mr Bakker said.

"Airlines are flying to markets - not to airports. There is a need to increase market space, create critical mass and to bring in more passengers not just by flights but also by ferries and cross-boundary coaches. We should make it interesting for airlines to pick up passengers at HKIA and fly through. It's the same with cargo. We need to increase cargo size. We're exploring to set up in the mainland and be close to our passengers."

Competitive edge intact

Of competition with Baiyun Airport, Mr Bakker said: "There is a thin line between competition and co-operation. We must see how best to co-operate and not compete. Look at the facts and not the perception. The fact is we're still cheaper than the mainland. Look at the costs of transporting goods from the mainland, for example from Dongguan to New York. We're still cheaper and there's a two-day advantage, leaving aside reliability. Hong Kong is still cheaper than other airports in the Pearl River Delta."

The market, said Mr Bakker, is changing dramatically and one needs to be flexible when dealing with a young industry like the airport industry. "Eight years ago, nobody would have thought that express cargo would grow so fast. Now it's about 9 per cent of our general cargo and growing twice as fast. So we need to take into account three things: flexibility, flexibility and flexibility."

World's best airport

Baiyun is comprised of two runways and a terminal building, but HKIA is bigger and growing. Voted as the world's best airport for four consecutive years by the UK-based Skytrax Research Institute, HKIA is already handling 45 million passengers and 3 million tonnes of cargo a year and there are plans to raise the capacity to 87 million passengers and 9 million tonnes of cargo in a decade.

Mr Bakker insists that HKIA will provide products according to customer needs. "We'll do surveys and segment our markets on the basis of the surveys. We need benchmarks to make it a memorable experience for our passengers. We need to increase our catchment area as we have a home market of 7 million, but HKIA has an open capacity for 87 million. We strive to be a high quality hub with the greatest critical mass in the Pearl River Delta. " 

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