Day: June 12, 2011

When I say “Dangerous approach”, what airport do you think of? I personally think of Kai Tak, in Hong Kong. That must be one of the most well known approaches in the world. It’s not hard to understand why, either. A fully loaded Boeing 747, turning at a slow speed, flying very low over the city, to align itself with the runway at the last moment is for many an unforgettable sight. Search it on YouTube if you don’t know what I’m talking about. However, in all this, there is a sad thing: Kai Tak was closed several years ago, replaced by the new Hong Kong intl. airport. So did we lose one of most fun approaches? Probably, yes, but that doesn’t mean there is a replacement. As a matter of fact, there is an airport with an approach that is very similar to Kai Tak’s approach, but for that we have to go to the other side of the world. Namely, to Tegucigalpa, a city in Honduras. The airport of that town, being Toncontín intl. airport (MHTG), is one of those airports that must be a thrill flying into. You approach the runway at an angle, and at the last moment you have to turn to align with the runway, much like at Kai Tak. What Kai Tak doesn’t have, however, is a hill, right at the start of the runway, forcing you to fly extremely low, brushing your extended landing gear against bushes and small trees. It is this airport and this approach that LatinVFR recreated in the scenery that I will review here.