---
title: "HKG is which airport? Hong Kong"
description: "HKG is Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong. Why the code is HKG and not something you could guess, what VHHH means, and the codes it gets mixed up with."
url: https://atoneplace.net/airport/hkg/
site: "At One Place"
---

# What airport is HKG?

**HKG is: Hong Kong International Airport**

Hong Kong

## Why the code is HKG

Hong KonG.

The airport authority or a contemporaneous record states this directly.

## The airport

- **IATA code:** HKG
- **ICAO code:** VHHH
- **Airport:** Hong Kong International Airport
- **City:** Hong Kong
- **Opened:** 1998
- **Code origin:** Documented

It replaced Kai Tak, whose approach required a hard visual right turn at 200 metres over apartment blocks, guided by a giant orange-and-white checkerboard painted on a hillside. Kai Tak was one of the most difficult routine approaches in commercial aviation and closed the day the new airport opened, in a single overnight move.

## Codes it used to have

| Code | Until | What happened |
| --- | --- | --- |
| HKG | 1998 | The code transferred from Kai Tak, which held it until the airport closed. |

## The other code, VHHH

Every airport has two codes. The three-letter IATA code, HKG, is the one on your boarding pass and your luggage tag, and it is assigned for commercial use. The four-letter ICAO code, VHHH, is the one pilots and controllers use, and it is assigned geographically: the first letter or two identify the region, so every airport in the same part of the world shares a prefix. That is why VHHH looks nothing like HKG.

## Common questions

### What airport is HKG?

Hong Kong International Airport, in Hong Kong.

### Why is Hong Kong's airport called HKG?

Hong KonG.

### What is the difference between HKG and VHHH?

HKG is the IATA code, used commercially — tickets, timetables, luggage tags. VHHH is the ICAO code, used operationally by pilots and air traffic control, and assigned geographically by region.

## Related pages

- [Airport codes in Hong Kong](https://atoneplace.net/airport/in/hong-kong/)

## Sources

- OurAirports — OurAirports (https://ourairports.com/data/) [Public domain]