Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airways has confirmed the suspension of a junior pilot pending an investigation, after he failed an alcohol breath test shortly before he was scheduled to fly to the city from Sydney, causing a lengthy delay to the flight.
The airline told the Post on Thursday morning it was investigating the second officer of flight CX110, who failed the test in Sydney on Tuesday, emphasising safety was its “overriding priority” and it had zero tolerance for staff who did not comply with alcohol policies.
“Cathay Pacific is aware of the reports and we are maintaining close communication with the relevant authorities. The second officer in question has been suspended from flying duties with immediate effect, pending a full investigation,” a Cathay Pacific spokesman told the Post.
“Safety is our overriding priority and we have a zero-tolerance approach to non-compliance with our alcohol and other drugs (AOD) policy, which sets out the company’s standards and guidelines on handling any problematic use of alcohol or other drugs.”
The Post revealed the junior pilot’s suspension on Wednesday.
The spokesman said any individual confirmed to have breached the company’s AOD policy would be summarily dismissed in accordance with its long-standing procedures.
He reiterated Cathay pilots were all well aware of the policy, with initial training upon joining the airline and refresher courses and examinations conducted annually.
“We conduct random AOD tests on our pilots in Hong Kong in line with industry best practices, with further random testing conducted by the relevant authorities at our outports,” he said.
The spokesman said the airline extended its sincere apologies and affected customers were transferred to other flights “as soon as possible”.
Some aircrew with flight CX110 underwent alcohol breath tests in Sydney at the request of Australian authorities, a source said. The second officer failed the breath test, leading to his immediate suspension and the flight being delayed.
The insider said pilots normally followed the “10-hour bottle to throttle rule” by not drinking 10 hours before reporting for flying duty.
The Airbus A350-941 was scheduled to depart at 7.35am Sydney time on Wednesday and arrive in Hong Kong at 3.05pm.
Instead, it departed Sydney at 10.51am on Thursday and is set to arrive in Hong Kong at 6.22pm.
The source said the carrier was angered by the incident, which had caused financial losses, and Cathay might consider sacking the junior pilot involved.
He added that the junior pilot joined the airline in 2022.
Cathay’s operations manual, seen by the Post, says a breath test failure for employees in safety-sensitive roles is a reading greater than or equal to 9 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath, equivalent to 0.02 per cent blood alcohol content.
The requirement is stricter than Hong Kong’s drink-driving limit, which is 22mcg/100ml of breath, or 0.05 per cent blood alcohol content.
The manual states that crew members should not report for duty if they are under the influence of alcohol or other drugs.
They should also not consume alcohol from 10 hours before they are scheduled to report for duty.
The consumption of two standard drinks can result in a breath alcohol concentration near the legal limit, according to Hong Kong police.
One standard drink is equivalent to 250ml (8.4 fluid ounces) of beer, 100ml of table wine or 30ml of whisky.
