The North Satellite Concourse at Hong Kong International Airport will open December 17, serving more than 5 million passengers a year.

The Airport Authority has invested more than $1 billion into the structure, which will ensure top service for the growing number of passengers flying on smaller aircraft, allowing the airport to continue meeting its performance pledge of embarking and disembarking more than 90% of its passengers by bridge.

To the north of Terminal 1, the 20,000 square metre concourse is a two-storey facility equipped with 10 frontal stands for narrow-bodied aircraft. Its waiting area houses 10 retail and two catering outlets. Shuttle buses between the concourse and Terminal 1 will run every four minutes.

The authority's Airport Operations Executive Director Howard Eng said: "With the new satellite concourse, less than 10 flights will need to be parked at remote bays every day compared to the current 40 to 50. This means more passengers can embark or disembark their aircraft in a pleasant, weatherproof environment, sparing them the inconvenience of being exposed to hot or rainy weather."

The concourse is one of the core projects of the $4.5 billion near-term airfield and terminal enhancement programme launched in 2006. The authority also plans to complete upgrading its baggage-handling system and consolidate the two arrival immigration halls into one single, spacious area in the near future. The entire programme will be concluded by 2011.

To cater for the airport's projected mid-term growth, the authority is studying a midfield expansion project to provide extra aircraft stands, related apron facilities and another passenger concourse to handle anticipated traffic demand up to the year 2020. The preliminary study will be completed next year.