An investigation was launched after a Cathay Pacific plane and a Dragonair jet carrying more than 600 passengers and crew between them had to take evasive action when they strayed into each other's path as they flew into Hong Kong.
Collision warning alarms sounded in the cockpits of the Cathay Pacific flight from New York with 299 passengers and 18 crew members on board, and the Dragonair flight from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, carrying 284 passengers and 12 crew as both planes approached Chek Lap Kok on September 18.
The two planes came within 2,000 metres of each other. They headed towards each other as they circled the airport amid congested airspace caused by bad weather, which led to several flights being diverted.
Traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS) alarms went off in the cockpits of both planes and the pilot of the Cathay Pacific flight descended while the pilot of the Dragonair flight climbed to put a safe distance between the two aircraft.
An air traffic controller said the airspace over Hong Kong was so congested at the time of the incident that the Dragonair flight then came too close to another plane waiting to land and had to change direction for a second time. The airlines, however, say there was only one incident. A spokeswoman for both Cathay Pacific and Dragonair yesterday confirmed the initial incident and said the matter had been reported to the Civil Aviation Department for an investigation.
During the same period, she said, eight other Cathay Pacific aircraft had to divert to Taipei, Kaohsiung, Macau and Guangzhou while a Cathay Pacific flight from London was kept in a holding pattern for so long that it made an emergency landing request.