Haha okay here is the scoop:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong_International_Airport
Chek Lap Kok is an island in the bay of Hong Kong, and by land reclamation and things the airport was built. Kai Tek (a famous airport in the same area) closed down years ago, so this one was built to be more efficient and take its place as "Hong Kong Intl."
Basically what is happening is that when Apple released the packages to UPS, they stored them where it was closest (Shenzhen is the CITY where the factory for Apple is.) From Shenzhen, it went right to the Major UPS hub in Hong Kong, and obviously were sitting there for a few days.
They must have been waiting, as some people were showing them going RIGHT from Guangzhou, and whether it be a fluke in the way they moved OR the thing is: THEY WERE NEVER STORED IN HONG KONG!
They may have went directly to Guangzhou, and those at hong Kong may have been changed or may has stayed there for UPS to allow themselves a "limit" to cap off the end of the Saturday deliveries. The first few days' rush was probably stored there, so that way UPS could know that EITHER WAY those packages were set, and they knew EXACTLY how many they could fit on a flight. So until enough space opened up or the last of the orders from before March 26th came through they could know exactly what they had.
Now the reason it says "Departed Chek Lap Kok" is because those Barcode scanners in their facility (handheld or otherwise) are showing that location because it is where they are.
When it says "In Transit to Guangzhou" it is basically pulling the info from UPS's servers, when entered appropriately, it will allow them to know info from the manifest as to where the shipment's next major stop is. We don't see this as much domestically because our shipments usually are never sent in bulk, and so are scanned individually without manifest - and often so quickly that they never sit like these packages are - so they dont have to enter that info.
Basically:
- Our packages have left Hong Kong.
- They will travel (through Shenzhen,) to Guangzhou (which all of these locations are in the Guangdong PROVINCE).
- At Guangzhou, they will sort the pallets and then load them onto containers made to fit into the belly of an aircraft (like the user took picks of the other day on here).
- Customs request forms will be filed
- At approximately 7 AM EST tomorrow (if this flight repeats) UPS71 will depart from ZGGG Guangzhou and be on its way to PANC Anchorage
- After clearing customs and reloading, the packages will then proceed on the same exact plane to KSDF Louisville, and arrive there around 1 AM Saturday Morning - with plenty of time to catch planes out to Saturday delivery areas
Oh and also - China's shipping will be hampered by the Easter holiday, with only certain critical shipments leaving. Possibly a reason why Apple decided to make it a Saturday release.
(Sorry for the long post - but that should answer pretty much EVERY question there is about whats happening now
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