Cathay Pacific shares plunge after China warning on protests

Yahoo – AFP, August 12, 2019

Cathay Pacific shares plunge after China warning on protests

Hong Kong (AFP) - Shares in Hong Kong's flagship carrier Cathay Pacific plunged more than four percent on Monday, after Beijing banned airline staff supporting Hong Kong protesters from flights going through the mainland.

Cathay shares lost 4.37 percent to HK$9.85 by the break in Hong Kong, with the carrier's parent company Swire Pacific Ltd. plunging 5.26 percent to HK$77.50.

The nosedive comes as the airline is caught up in pro-democracy protests that have rocked Hong Kong for more than two months.

On Friday, Beijing's aviation regulator ordered Cathay to submit a list of the identities of staff working on flights to the mainland or passing through its airspace.

It warned any staff members involved in "illegal protests" would be banned from such flights.

Cathay's CEO Rupert Hogg said in a message to staff on Saturday that the airline was obliged to comply with the new rules set out by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

"Cathay Pacific Group's operations in mainland China are key to our business. In addition to flying in and out of mainland China, a large number of our routes both to Europe and to the USA also fly through mainland China airspace," Hogg wrote.

"We are therefore legally required to follow CAAC regulations and, as is the case with any notices issued by any regulatory authority having jurisdiction over us, we must and will comply."

Cathay appears to have become a target of Beijing's ire after some of its crew joined protests and media reported one of its pilots had been charged with rioting.

The carrier's chairman John Slosar has defended his staff's right to freedom of thought, saying "we certainly wouldn't dream of telling them what they have to think about something".

But Hogg cautioned staff about their behaviour.

"Though people may share different views, it is essential that we all respect each other, our customers and members of the public," he wrote.

Cathay has suspended a pilot who has been accused of rioting after allegedly participating in the Hong Kong protests.

And it said Saturday that it had fired two airport ground staff, without specifying why. Local media reported that they were accused of leaking the travel details of a Hong Kong police football team that was travelling to the mainland.

US scolds China over 'Orwellian' airline demands

Yahoo – AFP, May 5, 2018

As of May 5, the website of American Airlines listed Taiwan, Hong Kong and
Macau as entities separate from China (AFP Photo/Daniel SLIM)

Washington (AFP) - The United States on Saturday scolded China for attempting to impose "political correctness" on American carriers by asking them to classify Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau as Chinese territories.

A sternly worded White House statement excoriated Beijing for the demands, which it termed "Orwellian nonsense."

"President Donald J. Trump ran against political correctness in the United States," it said. "He will stand up for Americans resisting efforts by the Chinese Communist Party to impose Chinese political correctness on American companies and citizens."

The statement added that the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration sent a notice to 36 foreign air carriers, including a number of American carriers, on April 25, asking them to comply with Beijing's standards.

As of Saturday, the website of American Airlines listed Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau as entities separate from China. Rivals United Airlines and Delta listed Taiwan separately but not Hong Kong or Macau.

Taiwan has been self-ruled since splitting from the mainland after a 1949 civil war, maintaining its own government, military and independent foreign policy.

But Beijing has refused to recognize the island, viewing it as part of its territory awaiting reunification with the mainland -- by force, if necessary.

The US has maintained a delicate diplomatic balance since 1979, recognizing Beijing's sovereignty as part of its "One China" policy, while remaining Taiwan's most powerful unofficial ally and main supplier of arms.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong, a British colony until 1997, and Macau, a Portuguese colony until 1999, are now "special administrative regions" of China.

The move came after the US and China held high-stakes trade talks in Beijing aimed at forestalling a looming conflict between the world's two largest economies.

In January, Australia's Qantas Airways changed its website classification of Taiwan and Hong Kong from separate countries to Chinese territories, blaming its earlier approach on an "oversight."

Philippine Airlines Quits Flying Shark Fins Amid Outcry

Jakarta Globe – AFP,  Apr 24, 2014

A family eats shark fin soup at Vancouver's Grand Honor Chinese restaurant
 in Vancouver, British Columbia, in this file photo. Philippine Airlines (PAL) said
on April 24, 2014 it has stopped flying shark fin cargoes. (Reuters Photo/Ben Nelms)

Manila. Philippine Airlines (PAL) said Thursday it has stopped flying shark fin cargoes, joining a number of other Asia-Pacific carriers in taking a stand for marine conservation.

The fins are used in shark fin soup, a much-valued delicacy in Hong Kong and China.

Conservationists say booming demand for such fins has put pressure on the world’s shark populations, prompting calls for measures to restrict their trade.

“PAL values the issue on protection and conservation of endangered marine life seriously, recognizing that the company’s long-term interest is and should be consistent with sustainable and responsible business practices,” a PAL statement said.

Air New Zealand as well as South Korea’s two largest airlines, Korean Air and Asiana, separately announced last year that they would ban shark fins from their cargo flights, a year after Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific also stopped shipping them.

Fiji Airways announced last year it would no longer carry “shark fins and shark-related products sourced from unsustainable and unverified sources”, and would only carry fins from species not threatened with extinction.

Agence France-Presse

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Philippines Airport Terminal ‘World’s Worst,’ Jakarta Airport 6th Worst in Asia: Survey

Jakarta Globe – AFP, October 18, 2013

Passengers rest on a bench at the airport in Manila on April 27.
(Reuters Photo/Cheryl Ravelo)

The Philippines’ main Manila airport terminal has been named the World’s worst for the second year in a row in a survey by an online travel website.

Officials on Friday brushed off the survey results, insisting conditions were being improved.

“The Guide to Sleeping in Airports,” a popular travel site, said Manila’s crowded Terminal 1 was the worse in the world, based on a traveler survey that assessed comfort, convenience, cleanliness and customer service.

Reviews for Manila’s Terminal 1 posted on the site mentioned “dilapidated facilities,” dishonest airport workers — particularly taxi drivers — long waiting times and rude officials.

“These are old issues,” Manila airport Terminal 1 manager Dante Basanta told AFP, adding that the problems were already being addressed by the government.

He conceded that the Manila airport, with a capacity of about 6.5 million passengers annually, was overstretched, handling 8.1 million travellers last year.

Indonesian airports did not occupy any positions on the list, but Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta airport was ranked the sixth worst in Asia, behind Manila, Calcutta, Islamabad, Chennai and Mumbai, respectively.

The terminal at the Italian airport of Bergamo was named the second-worst in the world. According to the site, “people [there were] loafing around without T-shirt or without shoes as if they were in their homes and no one gives a hoot.”

The third-worst was Calcutta, just edging out Islamabad, ahead of Paris Beauvais.

The best rated airports were Singapore Changi, Seoul Incheon, Amsterdam Schiphol, Hong Kong and Helsinki Vantaa.

Manila’s Terminal 1, the oldest of its four passenger terminals, was built 32 years ago. The government has launched a 2.5-billion-peso ($58 million) renovation programme for the terminal.

It is also attempting to reduce congestion by moving at least three million passengers a year to a newer terminal.

Agence France-Presse