Cathay Pacific Airways has cleared the second hurdle in its attempt to resume flights to the mainland. In April, Cathay was awarded a licence by the Air Transport Licensing Authority to begin pursuing rights to fly to the mainland. Industry sources said yesterday the airline had now also been granted official designation to operate the Hong Kong-Beijing route by the Economic Development and Labour Bureau, the government arm which oversees the development of Hong Kong's air transport industry. The move paves the way for the airline to be allocated capacity by the bureau to start operating the route and for it to negotiate landing slots with Beijing airport. Air services between Hong Kong and the mainland are governed by an arrangement signed in early 2000. It is not known how much spare capacity on the Beijing route exists under the current arrangement. Industry sources said they believed Cathay should be able to begin operating at least daily services before the end of the year. However, the 2000 agreement still presents a regulatory barrier to Cathay's attempt to launch services to Shanghai and Xiamen.
