Hong Kong started flight operations on its third runway on Thursday, with officials saying it will keep the city's airport competitive as an aviation hub despite its lagging post-pandemic recovery. Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific said this week that it will reach 100 percent of pre-pandemic flights in January.

Hong Kong International Airport has started simultaneous three-runway operations for the first time allowing more aircraft to take off and land together.

Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) has officially launched its three-runway system. During the inauguration ceremony, three aircraft took off and landed simultaneously. In light of the news, the airport aims to restore its status as an international hub, which it lost due to the strict COVID-19 restrictions in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong’s Airport Authority is moving ahead with the next phase of a HK$100 billion (US$12.8 billion) infrastructure expansion to turn the city’s airport into a “landmark” destination as it fuels itself with a “sense of crisis” to beat the competition,

Hong Kong’s third airport runway officially starts operating on Thursday, but there’ll be hardly any additional flight capacity for at least another year.