A new life well travelled: Parts from Cathay Pacific's retired planes reused in vigorous recycling programme

Retired Cathay Pacific aircraft are getting a green future, with a recycling drive that has seen 90 per cent of the Airbus A340-300 vehicles recycled for new uses.

The 11 jets - the oldest of which came into service in 1996 - are being stood down as the airline moved to newer, more fuel-efficient planes. They were, or will be, transferred to the French workshops of British company AerFin, where parts were either melted down or removed for use on other aircraft.

New techniques mean 90 per cent of the plane's materials can be reused, up from half in previous recycling efforts.

"We reuse the aluminium and make a car, which is totally different, unrelated to airlines," said James Tong Wai-pong, Cathay's director of corporate affairs, adding that the metal made up of 40 per cent of the total weight of an aircraft.

When melted down, the aluminium can also be reused in the construction sector for making window frames or doors. Some could take flight again as they were used in the aerospace industry. Other components were recycled in a more straightforward way - they were simply moved into other aircraft.

Four planes have already undergone the dismantling process, having been taken apart between April and July this year. The seven remaining aircraft will undergo the same fate when they are pulled from service between now and the end of 2017.