RAF Kai Tak

Infobox Airport
name =RAF Kai Tak
nativename-a =
nativename-r =


IATA =
ICAO =VHKT (Closed)
type =Military
owner =
operator =
city-served =
location =Kowloon, Hong Kong
elevation-f =28
elevation-m =9
coordinates =coord|22|19|43|N|114|11|39|E|type:airport
metric-elev =yes
metric-rwy =yes
r1-number =13/31 (Closed)
r1-length-f =11,122
r1-length-m =3,390
r1-surface =Paved
footnotes =

RAF Kai Tak was a Royal Air Force station in Hong Kong. It was opened in 1927 and used for seaplanes. The RAF flight operated a few land based aircraft as well as having spare aircraft for naval units.

History

From 1968 to 1978 it was used by various RAF helicopter units, as well as the Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force and Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps Air Unit. The RAF left Kai Tak and moved most other operations to Sek Kong Airfield.

From 1993 onwards the civilian Government Flying Service replaced Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force at Kai Tak, thus ending the RAF presence at the airport.

The apron and the old NCO Mess areas were used by the Royal Hong Kong Police Force as the Police Driving School premises for a number of years until re-sited.

Non-Military Users

It was the main airfield in Hong Kong housing other non-military users:

* Far East Flying Training School founded in the 1920s - later changed its name to Far East Flying and Technical School.
* The Hong Kong Flying Club 1927
* Aero Club of Hong Kong 1962.
* offices of various airlines including:
** Cathay Pacific
** Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company (HAECO)
** Hong Kong Polytechnic
** Hong Kong Aviation Club
** Heliservices (Hong Kong) Limited
** Macau Aerial Transport Company
** British Overseas Airways Corporation

Aircraft

During the 1940s, Japanese A6M Zero fighters were based at Kai Tak, as well as United States Air Force Consolidated B-24 Liberator and North American B-25 Mitchell bombers.

A list of aircraft stationed there:

quadrons

The Japanese were stationed at Kai Tak during World War II and was charge with extending the runway at the base.

*Japan Force Communications Flight Squadron (28 Apr 1946 - xxx xxxx)

A list of RAF squadrons at Kai Tak:

*Hong Kong Communication Flight Squadron (12 Sep 1945 - 15 Jan 1947)
*No. 132 Squadron RAF (15 Sep 1945 - 15 Apr 1946)
*No. 209 Squadron RAF (17 Sep 1945 - 28 Apr 1946)
*No. 681 Squadron RAF (27 Sep - 23 Dec 1945)
*No 200 Staging Post RAF (Oct 1945 - - Jun 1946)
*No 1331 Wing RAF Regiment (xxx xxxx - May 1946)
*No. 96 Squadron RAF (16 Apr - 1 Jun 1946)
*No. 110 Squadron RAF (1 Jun 1946 - 15 Sep 1947)
*No 1430 (Flying Boat Transport) Flight Squadron RAF (5 Aug - 1 Sep 1946)
*No. 88 Squadron RAF (1 Sep 1946 - 24 Jun 1951)
*No. 1903 Flight RAF and No. 656 Squadron RAF (15 Jul 1948 - 17 Aug 1949)
*Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force (1 May 1949 - 1 Apr 1993)
*No. 28 Squadron RAF(11 May 1949 - 1 May 1950, 7 Oct 1950 - 28 Mar 1951, 15 Aug - 5 Dec 1955, 14 Jun 1957 - 2 Jan 1967, 1 Mar 1968 - 17 May 1978, 1 Nov 1996 - 4 Jun 1997)
*No. 80 Squadron RAF (20 Aug 1949 - 3 Jan 1950, 1 Feb - 7 Mar 1950, 28 Apr 1950 - 1 May 1955)
*Hong Kong Auxiliary Flight RAF (Oct 1949 - 1 Oct 1950)
*Hong Kong Auxiliary Squadron(1 Oct 1950 - 24 Nov 1953)
*Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force Wing (24 Nov 1953 - xxx 1954)
*Hong Kong Fighter Squadron (24 Nov 1953 - xxx 1954

RAF Detachments

*No. 215 Squadron RAF (Oct 1945 - Feb 1946)
*No. 209 Squadron RAF Apr 1946 - Jan 1955)
*No. 81 Squadron RAF (Oct 1947 - Apr 1958)
*No. 205 Squadron RAF (Sep 1949 - Mar 1958)
*No. 88 Squadron RAF (Jun 1951 - Oct 1954)
*No. 60 Squadron RAF (Jul 1961 - May 1968)
*No. 103 Squadron RAF (Aug 1963 - Mar 1969)
*No. 110 Squadron RAF (Jan 1964 - Mar 1969)
*No. 45 Squadron RAF (Jun 1965 - Feb 1970)

Kai Tak Runway

Kai Tak's first runway was a grass strip and the first tarmac, an east-west runway, was 457 metres long in 1939. A series of extensions were added over the years:

*1940s - 1,371 metres runway added by the Japanese
*1956 - 2,194 metres north-south runway added
*1970 - 2,541 metres
*1975 - 3,358 metres
*post 1975 - single paved runway 13/31 - 3390 metres (or 11,122 feet)

Facilities

* hanger for aircraft at Choi Hung Road [ [http://www.batgung.com/node/1810 Kai Tak Airport] ] used to store Supermarine Spitfires during WWII.

Timezone

* UTC+8 Beijing Time / Hong Kong Time

ee also

*List of airports in Hong Kong
*Sek Kong Airfield
*List of RAF stations
*Hong Kong International Airport
*Kai Tak Airport (the former Hong Kong International Airport, closed since 1998)
*British Forces Overseas Hong Kong

References

* [http://www.rafweb.org/Stations/Stations-K.htm#Kai%20Tak Crest Badge and Information of RAF Kai Tak]
* [http://www.raf.mod.uk/history_old/histories.html History of RAF]
*