HKIA and Chicago O'Hare Become Sister Airports

Airport Authority Hong Kong (AA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA)establishing Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) and O'Hare International Airport (O'Hare) as sister airports.

AA CEO Stanley Hui said the agreement would promote cooperation between the two airports in the areas of airport management and customer service. "HKIA and O'Hare are both leading aviation gateways, and therefore we have much in common and a lot to learn from each other. With this agreement, we will be able to form closer ties and exchange our know-how in airport management while maintaining and exceeding passenger expectations. This will help reinforce HKIA's status as a leading international and regional aviation hub and a preferred gateway to the Mainland," Mr Hui said.

"With the support of Mayor Richard M. Daley, we are honored to establish this new partnership with the Airport Authority Hong Kong," said CDA Commissioner Rosemarie S. Andolino. "This agreement reflects our commitment to work cooperatively in all aspects of our respective airports, and to promote business, commerce, trade, tourism and cultural relations between the cities of Hong Kong and Chicago. This partnership will be further solidified with the addition of new passenger service by Cathay Pacific Airways between O'Hare and Hong Kong International Airports beginning this September."

The agreement, which is the second of its kind signed by HKIA, outlines various areas of cooperation to build a strong, mutually beneficial relationship between two of the world's busiest airports in all aspects of aviation and its related businesses, such as exchanging expertise in dealing with customer service and sharing information on new technologies. HKIA's first "sister airport" agreement was signed with the Beijing Capital International Airport in 2010.

In 2010, HKIA served 51 million passengers and 4.1 million tonnes of cargo. Over 95 airlines operate flight services at HKIA to and from about 160 destinations worldwide, including around 45 points on the Mainland.

The CDA operates O'Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport, which together comprise one of the largest and busiest airport systems in the world. O'Hare is the largest airport in the State of Illinois and the Midwest of the United States. It handles 67 million passengers and 1.57 million tonnes of cargo annually with flights to nearly 200 cities worldwide.

At the moment, there are 14 passenger and 40 cargo flights flying between HKIA and O'Hare every week. Hong Kong-based airline Cathay Pacific has indicated that it will commence a non-stop daily passenger flight to the city in September this year.

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