Regulator issues warning over Cathay Pacific

The Civil Aviation Administration of China on Friday issued a major aviation safety risk warning over Cathay Pacific Airways in Hong Kong for a number of security risks and hidden dangers exposed recently.

The administration said some flight personnel of Cathay Pacific had participated in violent acts and been charged for related crimes, but were not being banned from aviation activities. The charges involved passenger information being leaked maliciously.

Such practices have shown there are hidden dangers to aviation safety, and have increased aviation risks from Hong Kong to mainland, the regulator said.

To maintain the order of air transport and protect passengers' safety, the administration imposed three conditions on Cathay Pacific .

From Saturday, Cathay Pacific should ban all staff who have participated and supported illegal protests and violent activities in Hong Kong, as well as those with records of extreme behaviors, from flying mainland-related flights or performing other duties related to mainland aviation .

From Sunday, the company should share the information of all crew members who fly flights to the Chinese mainland or over the airspace of the mainland to mainland civil aviation authorities. Without approval, flights will not be accepted to the mainland, the regulator said.

The administration also required the airline to submit a plan of strengthening internal control and improving flight safety and security to mainland aviation authorities before Thursday.

How Cathay Pacific implements the requirements will affect future handling of the issue, according to CAAC.

CAAC also ordered its central and southern regional bureaus to hold face-to-face talks with representatives of Cathay Pacific, it said.

Earlier on Friday, Cathay Pacific said in a statement the company has always supported the principle of "one country, two systems" and recognizes that Hong Kong is a part of China.

The company also said the personal behavior of some employees do not represent the company's position, and it will deal with the problem immediately.

On Wednesday, the company apologized in a statement for an inappropriate leak of flight information of a group of police officers from Hong Kong by a staff member.

The Hong Kong police soccer team's flight information for a trip from Hong Kong to Chengdu, Sichuan province, was shared online.