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Harvey Kong

Hongkonger Gigi Yuen Wing-Chi always dreamed of taking off in the aviation industry, but her time in secondary school led her to settle on studying chemistry and biology.
“Subjects such as chemistry and biology, as well as laboratory work, were more easily accessible in secondary school, so I believed I wanted to work in a laboratory,” Yuen, now 23, said.
She went on to graduate from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology with a major in biochemistry and cell biology and a minor in business in June 2023, but decided during the course she was unsuited to laboratory work.
After she decided to give aviation another shot, she joined the “Working Holiday@Lantau” programme last September.
Organised by city NGO the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups and the Airport Authority, the annual scheme offers 10 young people one-year work placements at the airport with free accommodation.
Yuen worked as a crew operations officer at Cathay Pacific Airways while on the programme, handling ad hoc crew rosters for the airline.
She said the experience had reaffirmed her goal to be a pilot.
“If it wasn’t for the programme, I would not have been so sure that I was suitable for this industry or so sure that I could try my hand at applying to be a pilot,” she said, adding that she aimed to enrol in the cadet pilot programme.
The scheme has helped nearly 70 aviation aspirants since it launched in 2018.
The programme is run under the Airport Authority’s “Extra Mile” project, which acts as a platform for the organisation and its business partners to nurture industry talent and help tackle personnel shortages.
Authority figures show the airport had about 73,000 employees in 2018, before the figure fell to 53,000 in 2022.
The authority said that, because of continued recruitment efforts by its airport business partners, its workforce had risen to more than 60,000 by the end of last year, equivalent to about 80 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
“While overall manpower continued to recover in line with traffic recovery, it is estimated that the airport will need about 10,000 additional staff,” it added.
Siu Kam-hang, the authority’s assistant general manager for public affairs and community relations, said the main goal of the “Extra Mile” project was to encourage the industry to create more schemes that would introduce different types of people to the sector.

Meanwhile, Yuen said she believed such work placements were essential in attracting young people to the industry, noting such opportunities had helped challenge some of her misconceptions about the sector.
Fellow programme member Alexander Sheu Kwan-ho said he had learned more about the industry thanks to the working holiday scheme.
“To me, the aviation industry is very mysterious, you would not come to the airport unless you were taking a plane, which means your understanding of the industry will only be limited to television shows and films,” the 24-year-old said. “When you experience it yourself, it is a different feeling.”
Sheu said he joined the programme while on a gap year in 2023, adding he chose to take a break after feeling unsure about his future career path.
“I was questioning whether I was suitable for architecture or if I was missing some skills as I was studying this subject,” he said.
He added that the scheme helped him learn more about himself and taught him “soft skills” that he had not learned at school.
While Sheu said he was still unsure about his future path and had switched to studying contemporary media culture at the University of the Arts London in September, he said his airport placement left him open to considering the aviation industry.
“Where I had no experience a year ago, compared with having one year of experience now, the difference is really a lot,” he said.
“I can see myself being much more competitive, which will make it easier for me to join the aviation industry.”


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Hong Kong

‘Working Holiday@Lantau’ programme offers potential aviation talent one-year work placement at city’s airport with free accommodation


‘Working Holiday@Lantau’ programme offers potential aviation talent one-year work placement at city’s airport with free accommodation.
