First chairman of Hong Kong’s Airport Authority Wong Po-yan dies, aged 96
- Wong was instrumental in construction of Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok and was also a legislative councillor
- Having made his name as a plastics entrepreneur, Wong would later become a businessman trusted by Beijing in run-up to 1997 handover
Hong Kong’s first Airport Authority chairman Wong Po-yan died in the early hours on Monday, aged 96.
His son David Wong Yau-kar, chairman of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority, said his father had been suffering from illnesses common in old age and died at a local hospital.
He said his father died peacefully in the company of family members.
“My elder brother and I are in Hong Kong. My two elder sisters, who live overseas, rushed back to say goodbye to him,” he said.
On Tuesday, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor expressed sorrow over Wong’s death.
“Renowned for his leadership, he was appointed as the first Chairman of the Airport Authority Hong Kong, laying a solid foundation for the development of Hong Kong International Airport as the global aviation hub that it is today,” Lam said.
“I am saddened by the passing of Mr Wong. On behalf of the HKSAR Government, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to his family.”
Lam said Wong loved Hong Kong and his country, and praised him for making significant contributions to the economic development of the city.
Wong made his name first as a successful entrepreneur in the city’s plastics industry and later in political circles as a leading businessman trusted by Beijing before and after Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
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Born in Fujian province, he studied chemistry at Xiamen University during the Japanese occupation and stayed cocooned in the laboratory until the civil war erupted in 1946, fleeing to Hong Kong in the refugee exodus of 1948.
Once in Hong Kong, Wong started out as a factory clerk until he started a factory in 1958 to exploit the plastic flower manufacturing boom in the colony.
Before the 1997 handover, he was a legislative councillor and a member of the Basic Law Drafting Committee.
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In 1995, the pro-China businessman was appointed as the chairman of the Airport Authority, which played an important role in the construction of Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok.
In his political career, Wong also served as vice-chairman of the Basic Law Committee under the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), Beijing’s top legislative body, as well as being a local deputy to the NPC.
Wong was awarded the city’s top honour, the Grand Bauhinia Medal, in 1998.
