This Was The World's Most Terrifying Airport

We’ve never seen tech like this before…
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Video hosted by Fred Mills. Additional footage and images courtesy of Airboyd, Toho Co. LTD, Sony Pictures, Tristar Pictures, Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Criterion Collection, TVB News, Highways Department HK SAR, Hong Kong Civil Engineering and Development Department, RTHK, Hip Hing Construction.
Research sources:
simpleflying.com/why-hong-kon...
www.infrajournal.com/en/w/sus...
www.gov.hk/en/about/abouthk/f...
www.idos-research.de/uploads/...
www.mtr.com.hk/archive/corpor...
www.researchgate.net/figure/T...
peakvisor.com/range/hong-kong...
www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/H...
thehkhub.com/kai-tak-sports-p...
archive.is/RXcAH#selection-13...
www.ktd.gov.hk/photo/20200331...
www.citf.cic.hk/Product_Photo...
sfcs.cic.hk/en/BestPracticesH...
www.ktd.gov.hk/photo/Kai%20Ta...
www.cedd.gov.hk/filemanager/m...
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[@TheB1M]

Secure your privacy with Surfshark! Enter coupon code B1M for an extra 3 months free at surfshark.deals/b1m

[@COORS5766]

Can you do a video on that drill head or the head of the TBM? That was fascinating!

[@MrCaiobrz]

Can you do a journalistic video explaining why VPNs are useless, most of the advertisements are fooling the people and there are still big companies such are yourself falling for it for the easy $$$ (Selling our integrity)? yes, only way I will ever trust TheB1M again after a video that is 20% selling this thing

[@SMGJohn]

I wont ever use it, sue me Chinese Communist party!

[@Nighteyes66]

Aways love a video about Hong Kong. 1:38 99.9% on time is actually one of the most useless stat you can give about the Hong Kong MTR, I mean that in the best way, because the trains are so frequent (one every 3 min ish when I lived there) that nobody checks train times so you don't even know if the trains are late. IMO train frequency is a better metric than how on time it is. Great video as always.

[@maximusdeep]

yep and in rush hour the trains arrive 1 minute apart in busy lines.

[@ObristPlayep]

@@maximusdeepRush hour at Admiralty station, the trains on Island Line arrive every 30 seconds or so. It's absolutely insane. As a commuter I cannot imagine my life if it wasn't this efficient

[@uu78kk]

Still, many Hong Kong residents are still not satisfied with the service

[@TheFirebrillz]

New drinking game: Take a shot every time he says “In the world”

[@NewCastleIndiana]

He might someday age into looking like Clarkson, as well.

[@acommenter]

Fred is vying for a spot on top gear.

[@davefarmery8180]

I'd be pissed after 4 minutes 😅

[@nottherealrashnar]

or "...on Earth."

[@DangerB0ne]

You'll end up with the most cirrhosis ridden liver ...in the world.

[@drewbaker5595]

Scared the death out of me, when I first flew in. You could actually see people in their apartments.

[@only_1_kinobi]

And what they were watching on television

[@washoecreative595]

I flew in at night. And this was before the airport became internet famous. The worse aspect I remember was waiting for 20-30 minutes in a mob of hundreds of travelers trying to get transport into the city.

[@sam08g16]

What if you see a naked grandma

[@catchaser52]

I wonder how they feel,,,,

[@nezbrun872]

Yeah, but I bet you miss it, like I do.

[@alectang1614]

I've lived in Hong Kong now for just over 11 years (from Scotland) and I've been seeing new roads, buildings, highway bridges, tunnels, MTR lines every single year since arriving. The new Chek Lap Kok airport is being expanded now too. Hong Kong really is an infrastructure Mecca.

[@cv990a4]

Speaking of which, one of the last times I arrived in Kai Tak I was sitting in a window seat and got a magnificent view of all the infrastructure under construction for the new airport. It was like watching a gigantic model train set unfold beneath me. And then seeing the checkerboard up-close-and-personal just before landing (aircraft aimed for a checkboard pattern painted onto the hill, for its final turn, which you can just see in the opening video if you look carefully).

[@PatrickStuart2012]

I remember when I was at school in hk watching the aircraft from the windows coming into land. Was always awesome! Miss hk loads (lived up in Sai Kung)

[@pingpongdonkeykongkong]

I live across the border in Shenzhen which is also an infrastructure mecca for those that like construction. Seems it never stops. HK is truly an incredible place tho.

[@kaihang4685]

Hong Konger here - my favourite is Ṯsing Yi Island because it’s a bridge enthusiast’s paradise with three giant bridges spanning out of it! I’ve only ever seen the Scottish give us a run for our money. The Forth Bridges across the Firth were amazing to behold in person.

[@alectang1614]

@@cv990a4 yeah I remember landing in Kai tak as a kid. There was one time our British Airways flight had to abort landing. I remember that very clearly!

[@w2ttsy670]

This project is super awesome, but if you’re looking for more HK engineering content then a historic look at the build out of the new airport and the crazy logistics required to shift all the equipment between flights when Kai Tak was shut down is definitely worth looking at. Not to mention the switch over from British to Chinese ownership, a project on an insane deadline, and crazy engineering challenges related to rail, road, and reclaimed land.

[@My-nl6sg]

the quad-track local + express airport rail connection and the transit oriented mixed used development over stations is worthy of its own episode

[@porkpie2884]

"Super ......." is so 2022 🤣

[@philtucker1224]

Sounds awesome W2 - you should do it! ( come on buddy, have a go!) 😁👍

[@woodduck2178]

​@@porkpie2884Are you 5 years old?

[@porkpie2884]

@@woodduck2178 Looking for young children are you? I think I'd better alert the authorities.

[@denizerni151]

I came here to watch sponsors but the content of the channel was distracting

[@garytheosophilus]

There’s no such thing as free YT

[@CharlesLechmere_the_Ripper]

​@@garytheosophilus There is such a thing as 'to long and to many ad's' It is getting ridiculous and out of hand now, were close to spending more time on watching ad's than on the actual content. If we arent there already.

[@Argylleagen]

​@@CharlesLechmere_the_RipperWho decides what's too long? The creator. Because he's the one paying the bills. As for us, there not a better more viable system to switch to. So the least we can do is stop crying

[@KelvinTan133]

KZbin Revanced

[@brettsmithhanlon2495]

*too

[@DeanStephen]

That airport is much missed by many old travel enthusiasts. It was reputedly the best “E-ticket ride” in the skies. I was too young and missed it, but I sure regret not having the experience.

[@chrisforrester7782]

Thanks to this comment I had to educate myself as to what and "E-Ticket ride" was! New knowledge acquired, thanks Dean 🙂

[@relaxingnaturevideos1203]

@@chrisforrester7782Disneyland, they had tickets for each ride back in the days when it was pay-per-ride and the tickets went form A for the most simple attractions to E for the most exiting and expensive ones. Just saying so u guys don’t have to research xD

[@CockatooDude]

@@relaxingnaturevideos1203 Thank you! That was very helpful.

[@megaflux7144]

i will never use surf shark if for no other reason than them forcing me to constantly skip over ads in videos.

[@parth__agarwal]

I bought surfshark its so bad i bought back my old vpn

[@ryanortiz2648]

Haha

[@rocko44444444]

And prepare for the next: NordVPN, Incogni, Betterhelp, Brilliant, Skillshare, Nebula & Curiosity Stream.

[@sgbuses]

The irony when VPNs get banned in Hong Kong in future...

[@glennac]

Entitled much? 😆

[@Mattwattss]

6:15 “which shits 1.5m away” hahaha

[@headforthehillsuk]

The world's most terrifying airport. Lukla in Nepal might like to have that crown.

[@egill624]

I heard Thimphu's airport in Bhutan is really tough to land in as well

[@pureheartx3576]

It makes me a bit sad that I'll never experience landing at Kai Tak in a 747 and then driving by the walled city into town.

[@ScruffyMisguidedAndBlue]

My first ever flight was solo from UK to HK in '97. I had a window seat facing the apartments as we banked to come in to land, that was a scary initiation to flying!

[@GigglyWalrus]

long as hell too

[@Titot182]

I remember as 7 year old kid on the final approach into RWY 13 back in 1994 - A QANTAS 767-300ER What an epic view! At least you're able to recreate the landing on MSFS 2020

[@yensteel]

My school used to be in Kowloon City. Every couple of hours my classmates had to close our ears during class. Nobody there were concerned with the safety, merely the noise.

[@nikobellic570]

Nightmare

[@ESC_jackqulen]

My hometown mentioned! And yes, pedestrian tunnels (and bridges) are common but important features throughout Hong Kong. Being a city so dense and reliant on public transportations, they are used by thousands if not millions daily to get to bypass the busy car traffic on the ground

[@wasir3703]

The aviation enthusiast inside me wants Kai Tak to still be in operation. The engineering side of me is terrified of the idea of the logistics of Kai Tak.

[@abdur2890]

The effort put for Pedestrian subway says why hong kong public transit is so efficient. They are putting effort to make Public Transit along with being walkable across city as easier as possible. While most other countries just develop new public transit and completely forgets how walkable and easy to move around city and homes which make them unsuccessful.

[@li_tsz_fung]

That is very true. If you also take look at Japan, a lot of the tunnels are underground shopping malls, going under major roads, or above metro railway. That's something Hong Kong probably can't do anymore, since a lot of the time, it was being built / structurally planned when they're building those road / rails. I feel like that is part of how you how a pedestrian subway more attractive. Instead of the mess you usually see some other countries. If a pedestrian way is under-used, it would slowly become an uncomfortable environment, along side with lack of funding for maintenance, cleaning and security

[@glike2]

Flying into Hong Kong airport as a 12YO sitting in the cockpit in 1981 was amazing. Cathyway Pacific was so nice to let me, and excellent service!

[@jesper1010]

As an airline captain, I would like to argue that the intro is a bit dramatic 😂 There is nothing unsafe about disconnecting the autopilot. Neither is it a problem to turn at 1000ft above the ground. This happens everyday multiple time on so called visual approaches. "Diving straight towards a mountain..." Have you seen the approaches into FNC (Madeira)? Quite a bit more dramatic than the 45 degree turn at 1000 ft you are referring to. Also flying low enough to see into peoples homes.. Have a look at LIS runway 02. There are procedures in place for making this possible in a safe way, (ILS). Your videos are normally great, and it's clear that you do a lot of research! But when it comes to aviation, you might wanna read up a bit...

[@gigglesmurf2004]

What is the most difficult international airport to land at? Are there ones with no ILS?

[@jesper1010]

@@gigglesmurf2004 Various airports have their own difficulties, but most are very straight forward. Many places only have ILS on one side of the runway, where the other side have some form of non precision approach.

[@BayuAH]

I think somewhere in Nepal in the foot of Himalaya. I forgot the name, but the take-off almost 45 degree angle down straight to the cliff.

[@jesper1010]

@@BayuAH kzbin.info/www/bejne/fnnTh5-cbZKoeqssi=Zw69hQD_s3IQJNix This circling onto 04 in AMS is quite nice.

[@paradise_valley]

@@BayuAH Lukla I believe it's called

[@hamishpaterson2413]

Another brilliant docu from Fred & team 👍

[@BradleySkaggsNYC]

I will never forget landing there. It was so incredible to be in the bubble of a 747 literally flying between buildings. So amazing.

[@kaihang4685]

Hong Kong really does have the best mass transit in the world. Moving to a car-centric America-wannabe regional town in Australia was the biggest cultural shock for me.

[@CriticalMass-yu1ec]

St. Maarten the Princess Juliana International Airport is freaking crazy 🤣✅🪣📃😅

[@EnzoFoove]

whoa that rectangular TBM is mind blowing

[@kenster8270]

The airport on Saint Martin / Sint Maarten is also pretty terrifying.

[@fosterfuchs]

For spectators beyond the runway, rather than the cockpit crew/passengers.

[@J3scribe]

I must say, I was not expecting this to be a pedestrian access project. Nice reveal at the end. Kudos to another excellent video, B1M.

[@jakemarcus9999]

Absolutely great content as always!

[@CaravelClerihew]

Having both flown into the old Hong Kong airport (and just flown out of the new one literally last week), I can say the new one is a vast improvement.

[@Toastybear1]

B1M should do a video on Kowloon walled city. It was demolished in the late 90’s but was a fantastically interesting place.

[@yensteel]

The remains now reside in Kowloon Walled City Park. There's so many quirks and oddities indeed!

[@SpaceJesus_69]

HK mentioned, wtf is a competent government 🗣🗣🗣🔥🔥🔥

[@stickynorth]

Great video but I want to know more about that square head TBM and if its been in use anywhere else in the world and/or if it can be scaled up to use on other types of projects and how it compares in both time and economics...

[@cyberpunk.386]

Fred, that move slightly away from the camera for the Surfshark ad was classic. Almost Bond-esque! The only thing missing was “my name is Mills…Fred Mills”

[@mikeinsw11]

Great to see you showcase Greencoat Place : )

[@GazMoby]

Very enjoyable as always 👍

[@rickkearn7100]

Undeniably the best channel in this genre. Love every single episode. Top shelf. Cheers.

[@Girder3]

I missed out on Kai Tak since the first time I visited Hong Kong was in '98, but I would always read about how risky landing at the old airport was.

[@DavidS5118]

I've traveled for pleasure and business for decades and have no fear of flying except landing in Hong Kong or Sint Martin, both are scary airports for arrivals.

[@northropgrumman788]

This KZbin channel is 1 of my faves so interesting and delivered in a very informative way. Keep up the great work. ps... Could you come to Stoke-on-Trent and do a video on the biggest infrastructure project the area of Longton has ever had. Next month Stoke Council will be finally filing the massive pothole on Anchor Road. Once done 8 hours later the whole Stoke-on-Trent metropolitan area will be running like clock work.

[@evr0408]

Another great B1M video, but I have a slight criticism. If the old airport got redeveloped, where is the new one and how do it's logistics work? It would have been just a neat little inclusion to top off a nearly perfect video!

[@runderdfrech3560]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/nYK3hn-opr-VoNk

[@LEGOET]

So lucky to have landed at kai tak and live in hong kong in the early 90s seeing concorde land was the best sight

[@Samuel_J1]

When I first heard about RTBMs I thought they were a hoax, but seeing them in action is so cool!

[@djd1121]

I lived there back in thelate70s- early 80s and it always scared me witless coming in (they were still shaving the mountains down at that time.

[@Italianmarcus10]

something very similar to this is happening in Toronto with the Downsview airport redevelopment. Definitely worth checking out!!!

[@briansmith8470]

I love the 3D animations - they explain the ideas clearly!

[@sultanabran1]

so proud of my city. i lived 10 minutes from kai tak.

[@fuzedcable5612]

I just came back from Hong Kong and holy that city is beautiful. As a New Yorker I’ll say New York is still better but if I’m being honest Hong Kong was objectively just… holy moly that reshaped how I see cities.

[@mypasswordisuod7f1kwjrvzx32]

Hongkonger here, would you mind sharing how Hong Kong reshaped the way you see cities? I have never been to NYC so I can’t really tell the differences from my own perspective

[@user-ui4le8wo3t]

I used to love flying in/out of Kai Tak it was a bit of a roller coaster ride! I remember flying out of Kai Tak once, and at end of the runway (of to the left) was a KLM 747 fitted with an optional front landing wheel delete package

[@spam_slayed1481]

I remember seeing the China Airlines Flight that went off the end of the runway into the water. It sat in the water for quite a while.

[@Perfectlyhonest22]

Flew into Kai Tak several times in the 80’s and absolutely loved it. Could even see what the tenants were watching on their tvs under the airplane as it came in for a landing

[@markbuhler5721]

Landing at the Hong Kong Airport in 1995 is still a very memorable experience! Genuinely could look into people’s apartments!

[@michaelandrew4812]

Another fantastic video I am abit of a plane spotter and enjoyed this.

[@surfside75]

China: where'd everybody go?😢 USA: 😂😂😂

[@garyrandalls853]

I was there! First time visiting Hong Kong, one year after the takeover in 1997. I and my Taiwanese fiancé were visiting our Hong Kong friends, a couple, where the husband worked for the government monitoring the dopplers at the airport and various installations. He also gave us a tour of the new airport before it opened up. It was really quite amazing!

[@Evelynyns112]

I live very near to Choi Hung, Hong Kong. It's amazing that you know more than I do.

[@RedMushroomPanda]

Shout-out to the background music. Yin Yin is great.

[@oliviercoulon5196]

Landed in Kai Tak in Feb 1998. Amazing experience but glad they opened the new airport.

[@aracelyd.6455]

Amazing video, thanks for sharing, have a great day.☺️🧚🏻‍♀️

[@PakaBubi]

I miss Kai Tak. I remember flying there often with Mom when I was a wee fella.

[@bibekdas5595]

Love you Bro

[@tonypapas9854]

The RTBM is such a clever machine!

[@chriv8429]

Its not

[@jcngokai-76]

I used to live near Kai Tak Airport back in the 1980s and, from experience, I still couldn’t believe that there had yet to have a crash in the nearby neighborhood as a child growing up in Hong Kong. While I have been looking forward to seeing the transition in person one day, the controversial Article 23 and National Security Law have made my dream trip practically impossible.

[@EvandroJRSilva-mu6mi]

I've been to Hong Kong in 2015. It's public transport system is insanely good.

[@matdrat]

I remember flying in and out of that old airport. I miss that thrill.

[@asustransformer28]

The area as changed so much, went last week too the airside shopping centre its nice. I really wish i had a go at kai tak tho lol

[@KMIP-kl1zk]

thank you for introducing this tunnel. I live in that area.

[@jens_le_benz]

Could you make this development a series?

[@princetandukar9290]

The Lulka airport where they fly off a mountain is wicked! A video on that would be cool.

[@dg868HF9f]

The second part about the tunnel is good, but overall, the redevelopment so far is a failure. The cruise terminal is not easy to access and few ships coming, the mall inside the terminal is hardly and shops. For the residential and commercial, plan for rail connection has been changed between build and not build, very limited public transport to previous runway area, leasing of commercial building is also very bad, even for those just above subway station has just 50% leasing rate. For the sport's stadium, near finish but still developing, not much can be commented.

[@canto_v12]

It’s still a work in progress. The KT cruise terminal is not really convenient but cruise passengers can be dealt with by feeder buses.

[@sharonkwan5732]

Great to look at how amazing these engineering technologies are happening in my home town ❤

[@johnwalton3850]

I do like the idea of the new TBM, that is what you really call thinking outside the box😂

[@bingbang7455]

Wow! I flew into this airport once in the mid 90's en route to Singapore. I remember seeing peoples laundry during the landing. It is no exaggeration about seeing inside people apartments or it being scary. We deplaned, but those who were continuing on to Singapore did not get to go to the airport. They bussed us to a crowded waiting room where we were kept prisoner for hours. My memory is a bit fuzzy, but I think they didn't even have a bathroom. The whole experience was surreal.

[@rogerhargreaves2272]

I remember flying into Kai Tak as a kid, it was called the Checkerboard approach. It was quite a thrill unless you were a nervous flyer.

[@alidaweber1023]

I have heard that there’s an airport in Nepal that is at least as scary due to the unforgiving altitude, weather, and terrain.

[@PRCOM]

Miss kai tak airport, it was such a rollercoaster of a landing

[@andrewfrance1047]

Worth mentioning that when landing the pilot is aiming at the big red and white checkerboard you can see on the side of the hill. They fly straight towards it till they pass over an apartment block with another visual marker on its roof. That tells them exactly where to turn to line up with the runway. It was the most common airport model purchased for commercial flight simulators. No commercial airliner pilot landed there without having done simulated landings.

[@AgiHammerthief]

landing at Kai Tak was fun. Check in with a standby ticket was not: Captain next to the counter, guesstimating passengers weight to calculate the take off weight to be able to clear the mountain.

[@dallascowboy2221]

I’ve been to HK for business but it was at the new airport,,,, The old one was in Kowloon 😮

[@fredericperrin3279]

I lived in HK from 1995 to 2000, so I experienced the old and the new aiports. Kai Tak is mythical, I had so many epic landings! The new airport is much better in terms of infrastructure, but it was such an anti-climax landing there when it opened compared to Kai Tak. For people living in the old neighborhood, the closing of the aiport was a blessing. For flying enthusiasts, it was a disaster.

[@johnlabus7359]

I was fortunate to have flown in and out of the old airport. It was terrifying as much as it was fascinating!.....and yes, you could look into the apartments as you landed.

[@akihiro3798]

3:17 (for the car nerds) if you don't notice theres a Mercades Mclaren SLR on the right side stuck in traffic

[@benlau4026]

04:58 ah Choi Hung Metro 🤩

[@44unknown83]

Is this video using a Kaissereich soundtrack at the start?

[@user-iz3gv5vo6b]

God I miss that old airport! The landing was epic!

[@kvom01]

I landed there at night back in the early 90s. Didn't seem terrifying as a passenger, but looking at the apartment building windows was interesting for sure.

[@MrDadyD]

150k ppl on that small area? Im getting PTSD by just hearing it....

[@wyqtor]

Was expecting a video about Lukla! 😅😅

[@Mafiooso686]

It only took 20 years to start planning to redevelop it 💀

[@gjlrocco9793]

My grandfather on my mom side he was captain for years for Canadian Air line before Air Canada bought the company in 1999. He flew to that airport couple times in his career and he said he hated landed there because it was very dangous. Also, he flew the F-86 and F-104 for the RCAF in the 1960's.

[@Tom_Hadler]

Damn shame Kai Tak closed. Would've loved to fly in on a 747, or concorde back in the day (and then go visit Kowloon walled city). Was fun to land there on flight simulator

[@BSGSV]

As a kid, I landed in 747s several times at Kai Tek. Best time ever.

[@ronduncan9527]

Flew there once on a Thai 747. I was 10 so I didn’t know that anything was special about it until I was older.

[@Asuhail1993]

Your voice sounds very nice I m fan of your voice ❤

[@darwinqpenaflorida3797]

It’s jut like a story in Jakarta’s Kemoryan Airport operated from 1955 until 1983 when it was converted into developed land like parks and condominiums

[@_yadokari]

Landed there in 1994. I was not prepared for being close enough to the buildings to see a man shaving.

[@johnmorrall2717]

Impressive video

[@simonweiguny]

Very impressive.

[@somewhat.random]

I remember landing there in the early '80's. I was a teenager at the time and really did think we were going to crash.

[@DragonKingGaav]

This reminds me of kowloon walled city. Just like in the opening of Ghost of the Shell - 1995!

[@robertlee6781]

When I flew in in 1988, I thought I was flying through a laundomat. Drying clothes everywhere. Unforgettable landing.

[@TheRealMarkyPizzle]

Looks pretty awesome i dont travel much these days freb wish i had the money and time to do so