Chek Lap Kok takes off

24/7 operation, 40 million people a year, 750 aircraft a day, 80 airlines, 5 years to build, cost US$20 billion, 23 minutes by train to downtown Hong Kong. 

It is one of the marvels of the modern aviation age, a soaring, wing-like glass construction designed by renowned architect Norman Foster. 

But Hong Kong international airport is more than just an aesthetically appealing structure: for the past five years it has been voted best airport in the world by people who use it most, the international passengers canvassed in the Skytrax survey.

Cargo-shippers like it, too, for its astonishing efficiency, 24-hour operation and convenient location; most Asian cities can be reached from Hong Kong within four hours. 

It is now the world's fifth busiest international passenger airport, with 40 million people passing through every year and an average of 750 aircraft taking off and landing every day, bound for destinations as close as Guangzhou and Xiamen in southern China, or as far away as Johannesburg and London. 

More than 80 airlines, including 18 all-cargo carriers, operate at the airport, linking Hong Kong with more than 140 locations round the world. 

Hong Kong's flagship carrier Cathay Pacific, celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, operates flights to a big chunk of the world including New Zealand. In Hong Kong there's Dragonair concentrating on serving the booming cities of China, including Shanghai, where it has up to 20 flights every day. 

Ironically, when the new airport first opened in 1998, locals were collectively luke-warm about the place. They were unhappy about losing the old Kai Tak airport, the one where the passenger jets tilted on their sides, weaved around mountains, zoomed over rooftop washing lines and thundered to a final halt on the very edge of the harbour. 

After experiencing Chek Lap Kok's efficiency - locals can now swipe their identity card and clear immigration in seconds, then hop on a train which reaches downtown in just 23 minutes - they quickly became enthusiastic fans. Visitors can whiz through almost as quickly, passing through one of the 118 immigration counters before quickly retrieving their luggage. 

Initially, shopping and dining options were thin on the ground, a drawback that has now been rectified, with a vengeance. Outlets galore can be found in the US$77million ($122m) SkyMart mall, built under the guidance and supervision of commercial director Hans Bakker. 

"We have created a homely environment," says Bakker. "You get a cosy feeling now - we even have sofas, imported from Italy.

"Here, the customer is king. We asked passengers what they wanted and this is the result. The fast food is very popular - and you can also eat at a seafood bar or listen to live music. I think the airport is much more people-friendly than before.

"We are also proud of having more shops with a Hong Kong flavour. Now you really feel you are in Hong Kong." 

The airport is a project that in so many ways captures the very essence of the city's ethos ... plan in monumentally large terms and then implement schemes at breakneck pace. It is worth recapping that it was built on reclaimed land, by blasting an island to bits and using the rocks to fill in the ocean. 

The total cost, including the Tsing Ma bridge, the world's longest road-rail link, freeways, tunnels and an express train was US$20 billion, give or take a few million dollars. 

That easy access to downtown Hong Kong allows people with time to kill between flights - realistically, three hours would be the minimum - to plan an itinerary that takes in the key sights such as the Peak, the Star Ferry, and the frenetic shopping zone that is Tsim Sha Tsui. 

In the near future, there will be many more attractions in and around the airport itself, as expansion continues apace. 

A second passenger terminal, currently being built, will house an aviation-themed shopping plaza. This is all part of a larger development called SkyCity, which will also include the already-opened AsiaWorld-Expo exhibition centre, a second airport hotel, a nine-hole golf course, offices and a China-bound ferry terminal. 

During the coming decades, the airport management are anticipating a huge surge in China bound traffic, and are busy ensuring that Hong Kong is the most convenient way to enter the southern part of the country. 

The idea is to fly into Hong Kong and connect with a fast ferry, or bus, bound for the cities of the Pearl River Delta; streamlined cross border immigration facilities will make that an increasingly smoother journey to make. 

Another significant development this year will be launch of Hong Kong's first budget carrier, Oasis Hong Kong airlines, offering cut-price flights to London, Germany and Italy and the American cities of Oakland and Chicago.