Hi John,
Thanks for making your great documentary available on youtube, brought back many memories.
I well remember being on the flight deck of several arrivals to 13 (never 31 strangely), thanks to the crews of several friendly airlines. Thankfully, I never experienced an arrival on one of the more "challenging" days from the flight-deck, only from my 16th floor flat on Argyle Street, Kowloon and that was scary enough when the weather wasn't being too compliant and go-arounds were the order of the day. Hearing an aircraft on full power and knowing it is heading in your direction but being unable to see it has a funny "bowel-loosening effect". Strangely, the crews I flew with weren't as well acquainted with the chequerboard as I thought everyone flying the 13 IGS approach would be. I had to point it out to several of the crews.
Having visited "the chequerboard" a few times when it was in active service, I can vouch for its good placement, well apart from some local miscreants, who either didn't know its whereabouts or thought it had to be slalomed around! It was a great place to view arrivals to 13, and it should be preserved so that future generations can ask what it was for and us "Old Fogies" can tell them how it was the pinnacle of 20th century technology. Okay, maybe 19th century technology. But I bet there were very few 1st officers that could pick it out and sitting in the wrong seat on the wrong side of the aircraft doesn't count as an excuse!
Sadly, I never worked in the "tower" at Kai Tak, only down in the "engine room" (where real controllers used to lurk!) and my one visit to the tower was highlighted by all the staff ducking as a K..... A....... aircraft made an attempt at an approach via the "slaloming technique". It was that arrival that convinced me that 747s are virtually indestructible! And that being in a room with no windows makes for a much less stressful life.
Great memories, thanks John.