The Shek Kong Airfield (Chinese: 石崗機場), ICAO:VHSK), or formerly Sek Kong Airfield, is the airbase of People's Liberation Army Air Force in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). It is located in Shek Kong, near Pat Heung and Kam Tin.

Before the sovereignty of Hong Kong was transferred to the PRC in 1997, the airbase was used by the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong, and was then known as RAF Sek Kong. Construction of the airbase started in 1938, and was completed in 1950. The delay was due to Japanese occupation during the World War II. It was the first airport in Hong Kong with a paved runway. The general public can use the airport to learn to fly and operate private aeroplanes during weekends.

From the mid 1980s to 1992, RAF Sek Kong was a Vietnamese Refugee Detention Centre.

History

The RAF operated a small and limited force from 1950 to 1996, but they were temporary assignments from the UK. The Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force was the only permanent air force unit in Hong Kong.

A partial list of RAF squadrons stations before 1997:

• No. 80 Squadron RAF - 3 Jan - 1 Feb 1950, 7 Mar - 28 Apr 1950
• No. 28 Squadron RAF - 1 May - 7 Oct 1950, 28 Mar 1951 - 15 Aug 1955, 5 Dec 1955 - 14 Jun 1957, 17 May 1978 - 1 Nov 1996

British Army

The British Army also operated a small air unit in Hong Kong:

• Army Air Corps No. 660 Squadron

The PLAAF has a small presence in Hong Kong since 1997. There is only 1 PLA unit stationed in Sek Kong:

• PLAAF Helicopter Regiment 39968

Aircraft

RAF

British Army Air Corps also used Sek Kong for training and other operations using the Westland Scout.

Support Equipment

PLAAF

Runway

• It has just a single paved runway.
• Elevation: 15 m (50 feet)
• Length ：1905 m (6,250 feet)
• Width：37 m (120 feet)

Timezone

• UTC+8 Beijing Time / Hong Kong Time

Gate for the public

The main gate is located at 250, Kam Tin Road in the Shek Kong area in Yuen Long District, the New Territories.

Shek Kong Today

Nowadays Shek Kong is a airflied used by people to fly small prop planes as well as learn to fly. Often you can hear the sound of small planes flying around the New Territories in Hong Kong.

Public transport

• Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB) Route 51, Route 54, Route 77K, Route 251M
• Mini Green Bus Route 608

The content above was published at Airports-Worldwide.com in 2010.
We don't guarantee the information is fresh and accurate. The data may be wrong or outdated.
For more up-to-date information please refer to other sources.