Cathay Pacific sacks two ground staff over passenger information leak and says pilot charged over Hong Kong protests has been removed from flying duties

Airport workers had disclosed details of Hong Kong police soccer team’s travel arrangements

City’s largest airline issues directives in internal circular following sanctions imposed by Civil Aviation Administration of China on Friday

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Cathay Pacific instructed its staff to cooperate fully and respectfully with Chinese authorities and cautioned them on their future conduct while working on board the company’s aircraft. Photo: Roy Issa

Published: 3:57pm, 10 Aug 2019Updated: 11:59pm, 10 Aug 2019

Cathay Pacific Airways said on Saturday that two of its airport employees were sacked for leaking information and a pilot charged with rioting has been removed from flying duties.

The information leaked were the travel arrangements for a Hong Kong police soccer team, who were due to fly to Chengdu.

CEO Rupert Hogg said in a memo to staff the airline would comply with Chinese aviation authority sanctions revealed on Friday.

Hogg acknowledged a number of incidents in recent week involving Cathay employees, which put the company in the spotlight.

The directives were in response to measures imposed by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), which among other things, barred the airline’s aircrew who have joined or supported illegal protests from operating flights to mainland China or flying through Chinese airspace.

“We share the CAAC’s views about the paramount importance of flight safety,” the memo read.

In a previous memo issued earlier on Saturday, the airline told staff to expect increased security checks on its planes and operations on the mainland in the wake of the sanctions.