Cathay Pacific crew to strike at year's busiest time as airline asks government to mediate

Cathay Pacific's disgruntled cabin crew yesterday set a strike date of August 18-31, while the airline said it was asking the government to step in and mediate the dispute.

If the 14-day strike goes ahead at Cathay's busiest time of the year, some three million passengers and more than 6,600 flights could be affected.

"Our focus will be a clear-cut strike," said Flight Attendants Union (FAU) chairwoman Dora Lai Yuk-sim. "We have pre-announced the timeline so passengers can be well prepared."

Last night, an airline spokeswoman said: "We will continue to communicate with the union. The Labour Department is now in the process of arranging meetings with Cathay Pacific and the Flight Attendants Union in the coming weeks."

Earlier yesterday, Cathay's general manager of cabin crew Maggie Yeung, said: "We have full confidence in our colleagues that in every decision that they make, their priority will be the convenience of our passengers.

"At the same time we will continue our communication with the union and will hopefully resolve the issue very soon."

The FAU last night said it welcomed third-party mediation.