The near-disaster occurred in the morning, 8:55 a.m. local time, when Hong Kong Airlines flight HX236 was forced to suddenly hit the brakes after noticing a cargo aircraft was also on the runway getting ready for takeoff. The planes were less than a mile apart — a passenger jet can accelerate to 180 miles per hour on its runway before takeoff.
Speaking to the South China Morning Post, Warren Chim Wing-nin, from Hong Kong's Institution of Engineers, said that the sticky situation in which both planes found themselves in is rare.
With no injuries or damage, the passenger plane was eventually cleared to fly to Shanghai.
"The A333 airliner later flew to the destination according to the schedule," a spokesperson for the CAD said Friday. "No one was injured in the incident and the operation was not affected."
According to the Post, the airport, currently operating at near capacity, is expected to tack on an additional 7,000 extra flights this year. It began adding flights in March, and the expectation is to increase to 18,000 extra flights within three years.
