Cathay Pacific Hit With Double Whammy: Fuel Leak, NATO Intercept in Same Week
Hong Kong’s aviation regulator has ordered Cathay Pacific Airways to submit reports after two separate incidents involving its aircraft within days: a fuel leak from a cargo plane and a passenger jet that lost contact with air traffic control, prompting a NATO fighter jet interception.
Authorities in Hong Kong are investigating a suspected fuel leak from a Boeing 747 cargo aircraft at the city’s airport on Thursday morning [192366]. The airport’s control centre alerted police to a fuel leak from the plane’s left wing at around 8:32 am while it was parked outside the Cathay Pacific Cargo Terminal. No injuries were reported, and the cause remains under investigation [192366].
Separately, Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department (CAD) has ordered Cathay Pacific to conduct a full review after one of its passenger flights was intercepted by NATO fighter jets last week over Romanian airspace [192359]. The London-bound flight temporarily lost contact with air traffic controllers, prompting the military interception. The CAD expressed serious concern and outlined specific areas the airline must examine in its review [192359].