customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

summary

updatedDate

knowledgeQuestion

disableOffPlatformContent

published

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Cannix Yau

Oscar Liu

A junior pilot with Cathay Pacific Airways has been suspended from duty after he failed an alcohol breath test on Tuesday shortly before he was scheduled to fly from Sydney to Hong Kong, causing the flight to be delayed by two days, the Post has learned.
Sources said on Wednesday that some aircrew with flight CX110 underwent alcohol breath tests in Sydney at the request of Australian authorities and the junior pilot failed the breath test, leading to immediate suspension and the flight delay.
An insider added Cathay Pacific had sent another pilot from Hong Kong to Sydney to join the rescheduled flight.
“We all know the 10-hour bottle to throttle rule. You can’t drink 10 hours before reporting a flying duty,” the insider said. “Most of us observe this rule.
“The company limit is 0.02 per cent blood alcohol content. Now that the original second officer has been suspended from duty, Cathay has to arrange another second officer there as a replacement, causing a prolonged delay.”
The insider said the Airbus A350-941 was scheduled to depart at 7.35am Sydney time on Tuesday and arrive in Hong Kong at 3.05pm. But the flight was delayed by at least two days after the second officer failed the test.
The flight is now scheduled to leave Sydney at 10.35am on Thursday Australia time and arrive in Hong Kong at 5.27pm.
The source said the carrier was angered by the incident, which had caused financial losses, and Cathay might consider sacking the junior pilot involved.
The junior pilot, who served as a second officer, joined the airline in 2022, the insider said.

Cathay’s operations manual, seen by the Post, says a breath test failure for employees in safety-sensitive roles was a reading greater than or equal to 9 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
The requirement is stricter than Hong Kong’s drink-driving limit, which is 22mcg/100ml of breath, equivalent to 0.05 per cent blood alcohol content.
The manual adds that crew members should not report for duty if they were under the influence of alcohol or other drugs.
They should also not consume alcohol from 10 hours before they are scheduled to report for duty.
Two standard drinks could result in a breath alcohol concentration near the legal limit, according to Hong Kong police.
One standard drink is equivalent to 250ml (8.4 fluid ounces) of beer, 100ml of table wine or 30ml of whisky.
Paul Weatherilt, the chairman of the Hong Kong Aircrew Officers Association, said most pilots were probably checked once a year flying out and emphasised there should be no alcohol consumption before flying.
“It happens from time to time. Obviously there should be zero tolerance, given the safety critical nature of the job,” he said.
“But at the outport, it is much less systematic. It happens when someone reports seeing someone drinking or acting strangely.”
Weatherilt added that the second officer was a cruise pilot and only at the controls when the aircraft was flying at more than 20,000 feet – but bore the same responsibility to be fit for duty as any other officer.
“Second officers are just as responsible for showing up to work sober as any other pilots as they have the licence issued by the Civil Aviation Department,” he said.
“There is no difference. But they are not at the controls for take-off and landing or below 20,000 feet.”
Cathay has been contacted for comment.
The incident happened amid increased concern over the quality of Cathay’s cadet pilots after the carrier in late June removed three cadets from a training programme in the wake of three serious mistakes made at US-based training centre AeroGuard.
The company said it made its decision after the trio failed to comply with the requirements at the AeroGuard Flight Training Centre in Phoenix, Arizona.
It added that it had a “zero tolerance” policy on non-compliance with flight incident reporting requirements.
The three Hong Kong trainees were embroiled in a string of major errors in three weeks – a wingtip collision with a fixed object, a bounced landing which caused a substantial impact to the aircraft’s propeller and a plane which ran off a runway.
But they had elected to continue with their missions, instead of speaking to their duty flight instructor before they continued.
Cathay said at the time it had an “extremely stringent” recruitment and assessment process for cadets.
The airline added fewer than 8 per cent of applicants were accepted into the programme and continued on to complete the training and assessments needed to qualify as a second officer.


Airbus, Rolls-Royce to address airlines’ safety concerns over Cathay Pacific A350 engine fault

How an engine fire forced Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific to ground its A350 fleet

Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific axes 22 more flights over engine problem, bringing total to 90

Singapore Airlines follows Cathay Pacific’s lead, acts on Airbus A350 safety concerns

Cathay Pacific

Junior Cathay Pacific pilot suspended after failing alcohol test before flight to Hong Kong

A Cathay plane parked at Sydney’s airport. Some aircrew of flight CX110 underwent alcohol breath tests at the request of Australian authorities, a source says. Photo: Photo: Shutterstock

The carrier dispatched another second officer as a replacement after one failed an alcohol breath test. Photo: Sam Tsang

Hong Kong’s Cathay ordered to investigate after junior pilot fails alcohol test

Cathay pacific says safety is its “overriding priority” and it has zero tolerance for staff who do not comply its alcohol and other drugs policy. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

A Cathay plane in Sydney. Flight CX110 suffered a lengthy delay after the junior pilot failed the alcohol breath test. Photo: Shutterstock

Cathay’s operations manual states that crew members should not report for duty if they are under the influence of alcohol or other drugs. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Cathay passengers lucky they had seat belts on when toilet door fell: Hong Kong experts

Images posted online showing a Cathay Pacific staff member holding the door. Photo: Threads

There is no protocol for handling fixtures falling during take-off, but the priority is to keep the cabin safe, according to Darryl Chan, a former chairman of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers’ aircraft division. Photo: Threads

Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific launches inquiry after video shows staff member throwing luggage

A sceeengrab from the video circulating online that prompted the investigation. Photo: SCMP

Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific eyes prospect of daily flights to 2 Hainan cities, CEO says

Tourists take to the beach on mainland China’s island province of Hainan. Photo: Xinhua

Cathay CEO Ronald Lam has raised the prospect of an increase in the number of flights to mainland China’s Hainan province. Photo: Dickson Lee

News

Hong Kong

Transport

Sources say junior pilot for flight CX110 failed test in Sydney, leading to immediate suspension and service to be delayed by two days


Sources say junior pilot for flight CX110 failed test in Sydney, leading to immediate suspension and service to be delayed by two days.


Exclusive | Junior Cathay Pacific pilot suspended after failing alcohol test before flight to Hong Kong

Sources say junior pilot for flight CX110 failed test in Sydney, leading to immediate suspension and service to be delayed by two days