TOP DAY FOR CARGOTerminal ceremony is a landmark moment for airfreight hub Trade partners, government offi cials and media joined Chief Executive John Slosar and guest of hon-our Donald Tsang, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, for the topping-out ceremony for the HK$5.5 billion CX Cargo Terminal on 17 November.

The ceremony was held on the rooftop of the ter-minal which also provided guests with a great view of CX’s second Boeing 747-8 Freighter – Hong Kong Trader, which features a special livery highlighting Hong Kong’s skyline and arrived just hours before the topping-out began.

Speaking at the ceremony, John Slosar said: “When it begins operations in early 2013 the Cathay Pacifi c Cargo Terminal will mark a major advance-ment in Hong Kong’s position as the world’s busiest international air cargo hub.”

He presented the Chief Executive with a model of the 747-8F as a memento of the occasion before being joined by Airport Authority Chairman Marvin Cheung and representative for the Gammon-Hip Hing joint venture construction company Thomas Ho for the actual topping-out ceremony.

PRINTED ON 100% RECYCLED PAPER

A magazine for staff and friends of Cathay Pacifi c AirwaysDecember 2011, Issue 189

WIN A 747-8F MODEL!10 die-cast Dash 8s to give away

TOPPING TIME: HKSAR Chief Executive Donald Tsang and CX Chief Executive John Slosar at the ceremony with Hong Kong Trader in the rear.

December 2011, Issue 189

10 die-cast Dash 8s to give away

California dreamingHONG KONG WINNER: Local boy Matthew Chadwick rode California Memory to victory in the Cathay Paci� c Hong Kong Cup – the HK$20 million signature race at the Cathay Paci� c Hong Kong International Races held on 11 December in Sha Tin. Some 62,000 racegoers turned out to enjoy the airline-backed racing celebration.

2

Produced by CX’s Corporate Communication Department

7/F North Tower, Cathay Paci� c City, Lantau, HK

Publisher: C K YeungManaging Editor: Mark Tindall

Editor: Joyce WongEnquiries: 2747-5293GalaCXy ID: CCD#SCT

Email: ccd#sct@cathaypaci� c.com

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Performance Index

56.7%

85.3%

Within 15 minsIndustry standard

on-the-dot CX standard

On-time performance

Passengers carried 2,381,008 3.8%

Passenger load factor 80.1% -3.1pt

ASKs (000) 11,011,353 10.3%

Freight carried 135,998 -17.5%

Cargo load factor 66.2% -8.9pt

ATKs (000) 2,261,458 1.7%* Figures for Oct11

Traffi c/capacity (CX + KA)*Fuel price - Rolling 6 Months

Jun/11 Dec/11

USD per Barrel

Sing Jet Kerosene150

140

130

120

110

100

90

ICE Brent

Anticipation grows for new products‘Great’ value Premium Economy, new Economy seat roll out from March

Cathay Pacifi c’s portfolio of outport lounges received a big boost over the past month with a major refurbishment of a key European lounge followed by the opening of the airline’s fi rst branded lounge in the US.

On 7 November, the First and Business Class Lounge in Frankfurt re-opened after a major refi t, with three original artworks by Hong Kong art-ist Maria Lobo specially created for CX lounges unveiled – the fi rst time they’ve appeared in the airline’s lounges.

The Frankfurt lounge provides comfortable armchairs for up to 97 guests, three shower suites, and an improved buff et spread.

Bigger news is the lounge opening in San Francisco – the fi rst time CX has operated its own branded lounge in the States.

Lounge boost for passengers in Frankfurt, San Francisco

Excitement is building over a rash of infl ight product developments in 2012, with more details of the new Premium Economy Class just released and Cathay Pacifi c also confi rming that it will install a new Economy Class seat on the bulk of its long-haul aircraft.

Both the Premium Economy and new Economy seats will be progres-sively introduced on fl ights from 1 March.

The PEY cabin will go into all of the long-haul fl eet with 87 aircraft being fi tted by the end of 2013.

The product will initially feature to Sydney, Toronto, Vancouver and New York, with other routes follow-

“Demand for lounge usage is ever growing, so we decided to build our own lounge in San Francisco to better take care of our passengers,” says General Manager Product Alex McGowan.

Two key features in the 520 sq m facility that will make a big impression on travellers are the unique Cathay Solus Chairs – the fi rst time they’ve ap-peared outside Hong Kong – and the iconic Noodle Bar.

“The SFO lounge follows the London Heathrow lounge in featuring a new standard of F&B off erings with a range of hot and cold dishes for pas-sengers,” says Alex.

The lounge, which can seat 107 passengers, is located on Level 4 of the International Terminal at San Francisco International Airport.

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Thousands like NicoleFlight Attendant Nicole Lau will be featured on the “Meet the Team” minisite after her personal ad received more than 12,000 “likes” on Facebook.

The internal People and Service campaign saw 8,074 ads being created in Cathay City and 475 in outports.

This year sta� were also encour-aged to enter a Facebook compe-tition to collect as many likes as they could for their personal ads.

Nicole says the � nal number of 12,866 likes took her by surprise.

She initially posted her ad on her personal Facebook page and received roughly 1,500 likes. She realised she could reach a broader audience by putting her photo onto a fan page.

“On 8 November, I deleted my � rst photo and started afresh on a fan page,” she says.

“It was a big risk since the dead-line was only four days away!” Nicole adds, saying her husband and friends helped her get the word out.

Nicole says there were many comments about how “refreshing” she looked.

“People were pleasantly surprised to � nd out that cabin crew can have short hair and light, natural-looking makeup,” she says.

“Everyone I met, from the most senior colleague to the most junior, was interested in the campaign and it was a fun talking point for us all.”

Nicole’s pro� le will appear on the “Meet the Team” site early next year.

ing as the product rollout contin-ues.

The main features of PEY include a quieter, more spacious cabin than the existing Economy Class and a seat that will be wider and have a bigger recline.

The seat pitch will be 38 inches – compared to 32 inches in Economy Class – and passengers will benefi t from amenities such as a footrest, a 10.6-inch personal television, an in-seat power outlet, a multi-port connector for personal devices, and extra personal stowage space.

“Passengers will get great value for a great product,” said Chief Ex-ecutive John Slosar.

“The seat will have a generous recline and plenty of legroom, and passengers will also enjoy improved service and many other extras.”

On the ground, PEY passengers will benefi t from priority check-in, priority boarding and an extra bag-gage allowance.

Extra touches infl ight will begin with a welcome drink and include an enhanced meal service, an en-vironmentally friendly amenity kit, large pillows and noise-cancelling headsets.

Around 120 Marco Polo Club members were involved in helping develop the cushioning in the seat, coming to Cathay City to test the

cushion foam last year. “As always, the comfort of our cus-

tomers was front and centre of our design process,” John said.

The new long-haul Economy Class seat will be fi tted on long-haul Boeing 777-300ERs and Airbus A330-300s – 62 aircraft by the end of next year – and will feature a cradle mechanism to boost comfort in the recline position and improved living space.

Key features include the latest high-resolution touch-screen per-sonal televisions, a USB outlet and an iPod/iPhone outlet to allow pas-sengers to view their own content through the PTV screen.

PORT PLEASURES: The Frankfurt facility has been refreshed (above left) while a CX-branded lounge has opened in San Francisco (above right).

FRESH FACE: Nicole’s ad proved to be a winner on Facebook. FRESH FACE: Nicole’s ad proved

3

Update from the Chief ExecutiveThe incident involving CX365 in Shanghai was a sharp reminder about the importance of robust safety systems and high standards of training in our airline. It seems that a diffi cult situation was handled in a professional manner by the crew on the fl ight, who helped to ensure a calm evacuation.

Our safety and operational teams will of course conduct a full investigation into the incident to fi nd out the cause and any issues that resulted from our handling of the situation. There will, I’m sure, be some important learnings.

For now I’d like to thank all our staff – on the air-craft, in Shanghai and on the ground in Hong Kong – who ensured a swift and positive response.

Approaching the end of 2011 we can refl ect once

again on what a challenging business we are in. After the highs of 2010, when the stars really were aligned, this year has been a much bumpier ride.

Looking at Christmas, Santa is not going to deliver for cargo – the usual year-end rush is simply not going to arrive. Fortunately it seems that people still want to get away and enjoy a holiday, despite the economic uncertainty, and our pas-senger bookings are actually pretty good over the upcoming peak.

As for what happens after that, well, a lot will depend on the world economy. If, as is usually the case, cargo is a lead indicator and our passenger business starts to decline then of course we need to be prepared.

We’re very aware of the pressure of rising costs in our business and we’re already taking action to make sure we can run a much tighter ship in 2012, while remaining committed to the big investments we’re making. We need to do all those things that will help us become a better airline in the future.

I’d like to fi nish on a happier note by thanking ev-eryone in the team for your fantastic work this year. Great service is never an accident and we work very hard to produce the superb experience that brings our customers back to fl y with us again and again.

On behalf of the management team I wish ev-eryone in the CX family a very merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

John Slosar

A full internal investigation has begun into the incident on CX365 on 9 December which led to a full evacuation of the aircraft.

The Boeing 747-400 was about to depart from Pudong Interna-tional Airport in Shanghai, bound for Hong Kong, when the Captain took the decision to deploy the slides and get the 351 passen-gers and 19 crew o� the aircraft.

During the evacuation, nine people – seven passengers and two cabin crew – su� ered minor injuries and were taken to a nearby hospital.

All but one of the injured were released the same day with CX sta� assisting them throughout, including on their onward jour-ney back to Hong Kong.

“The cause of the incident is being investigated and we are cooperating fully with all the authorities concerned,” said Chief Executive John Slosar.

“The � ight and cabin crew had a di� cult situation to deal with but were able to get the pas-sengers o� the plane in a short space of time.”

CX treated the evacuation as a full-scale incident, activating the Crisis Management Centre in Cathay City, opening the CEPIC phone lines and bringing in CARE Team members.

A sta� team was � own out to Shanghai to provide support to the passengers, crew and families.

Arrangements were made to � y CX365 passengers onwards to their destinations, and at HKIA the team was mobilised quickly to ensure that support was of-fered to all those a� ected.

The priority was to help pas-sengers return to their original travel schedule as soon as pos-sible.

John thanked everyone for a “terri� c response” across the company following the incident.

Many challenges, more opportunities!Economic woes, but conference highlights optimism for futureThe overriding message at this year’s Management Conference was that the parlous state of the world economy will continue to make life diffi cult for the aviation industry in 2012 – but that Cathay Pacifi c will not lose of its long-term vision.

The global uncertainty has bitten deeply into business this year – particularly on the cargo side – and conference delegates were alerted to the potential diffi culties the airline will face in the coming year.

Two guest panellists at the 8 December event – Daniel Franklin from the Economist and JP Morgan’s Jing Urlich – confi rmed the gloomy outlook for the coming months, especially if the euro-zone crisis deepens further.

Chief Executive John Slosar said that the airline will continue to grow in 2012 – with a 7% rise in passenger ASKs and 17% growth in cargo capacity * – but “the world is in quite a state,” he stressed.

He said the team needs to be

“Next year is about meeting challenges and delivering results, and we must not lose sight of the opportunities in what will be a landmark year for product developments,” he said.

More opportunities will be presented through the next wave of strategy projects, 28 in total, which were detailed in a presentation by Director Corporate Development James Barrington.

James also gave details of “CX 2020”, a cross-department project that will take a detailed look at what the airline will need in nine years’ time in terms of people, facilities and processes given that “this is a high fi xed-cost business where it’s diffi cult to make changes quickly”.

Other presentations on the day touched on a range of issues important to the airline’s future, ranging from product and safety to IT delivery and PSS.

It was left to guest speaker Stephen Lam, Chief Secretary for Administration in the Hong Kong SAR Government, to close the conference, and he off ered delegates some useful insights into future developments in the airline’s home city.

“mentally fl exible” to face up to whatever challenges might be thrown the airline’s way next year, particularly if the global economy takes another nosedive.

“Aviation is what it is and it will take a lot of grit – things are not going to come our way easily next year,” he said.

“We’ll need to react and change course as necessary. We need to ride the cycles but also keep doing the

long-term things that will make the business stronger in the future.”

Chief Operating Offi cer Ivan Chu warned that one of the big challenges in 2012 will be keeping costs under control.

“We cannot aff ord to allow costs to grow faster than revenue and capacity growth,” he said, adding that departments had already been asked to minimise discretionary spending in the coming year.

Evacuation of CX365 investigated

OUTSIDE VIEW: Guest speakers Jing Urlich and Stephen Lam.

* Since the conference the budgeted rise for cargo capacity in 2012 has been revised to 10% following a decision to push back two of next year’s Dash 8 deliveries to 2013.

4

High-level visits spread theCX messageChief Executive John Slosar and Chief Operating Offi cer Ivan Chu led a delega-tion to visit the Commissioner’s Offi ce of China’s Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong SAR (MFA) on 14 November and were warmly received by Commissioner Lu Xin Hua and other senior offi cials at the MFA.

During the lunch meeting, John in-troduced the airline’s business plans, as well as the close cooperation between Cathay Pacifi c and Air China.

Also joining the delegation were Di-rector Corporate Aff airs Quince Chong, General Manager International Aff airs Arnold Cheng and Dragonair’s Chief Ex-ecutive Offi cer Patrick Yeung.

Earlier in the week on 11 November, John and Ivan visited the Hong Kong and Macao Aff airs Offi ce of the State Council in Beijing and met with Vice Minister Mr Zhou Bo and Vice Director Mr Zhong Yi.

During the courtesy visit, John talked about CX’s current performance and fu-ture expansion plan.

John also stressed the airline’s com-mitment to Hong Kong, especially its in-vestment in the new cargo terminal and the orders for new aircraft.

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‘Challenging and interesting’ time ahead for new Finance Director

New airline role for Swire money man

but I didn’t really enjoy auditing. I moved into training and an oppor-tunity came up to work in the Hong Kong offi ce – I moved here in 1992.

When did you switch to Swire?I joined the Swire group in Janu-ary 1995 and my early postings in-cluded Treasury, Hongkong United Dockyards and the Trading and Industrial division – in both Hong Kong and the United States.

By 2001 I was moved to Swire Pa-cifi c Off shore which thankfully was going through a period of rapid expansion – prior to that my roles had either been selling things or cost-cutting! I moved to Sydney in 2003 to be Finance Director for John Swire & Sons Pty and in 2009 was brought back to become Deputy Fi-nance Director of Swire Pacifi c.

Did you expect to be moved to CX?To be honest the Cathay job came as a big surprise – James’ decision to relocate back to the UK came out of the blue. I was ready for a move but wasn’t expecting this! I was very ex-

MEETING OF MINDS: (Above) John with Commissioner Lu (third from right), Deputy Commissioner Li Yuan-ming (second left) and the CX delegation; and (top) John with Vice Minister Mr Zhou Bo in Beijing.

In terms of where Cathay Pacific sits in the industry we’re in a

very healthy position.

There’s a new face in the Executive Offi ce at Cathay City, with Martin Murray moving across from Swire Pacifi c to replace James Hughes-Hallett as Finance Director.

CX World had a chat with the ami-able Scot to fi nd out more about his professional background and his ex-pectations on taking up a key role in the airline.

You are a chartered accountant by profession – was that a career path cemented at an early age?The reality is that I never knew what I wanted to do!

My father was an actuary and he suggested that if I was not really sure, why didn’t I do fi nance? He told me that once I was qualifi ed, “the world’s your oyster”. He was wrong; once qualifi ed you’re labelled “an ac-countant”!

You studied accountancy at uni-versity – how did your career path develop?I joined Arthur Young after gradu-ating from Glasgow University and became a chartered accountant,

cited when I got the news from the Chairman.

I’m helped by already having some understanding of Cathay and the airline business through being in the group role at Swire Pacifi c. Investors always ask a lot of ques-tions about the volatility of the air-line business, and I had to be up to speed with the general workings of the airline business when present-ing to the group insurers.

Is this a challenging time to be put in charge of an airline’s fi nances, given the economic climate?Challenging and interesting at the same time! Cathay Pacifi c is a very well managed company that has a strong balance sheet, so in terms of where we sit in the industry we’re in a very healthy position.

While we’re entering into what is, hopefully, a short-term cycle, and there may be challenges in terms of sourcing attractive funds and man-aging risk, we have policies and pro-cedures in place to manage things diligently through a downturn while maintaining our medium- to

long-term plan for growth and in-vestment.

What benefi ts will Project Hori-zon – the restructuring of the Fi-nance and Purchasing functions – bring?First of all, it’s not just about FIN and APD – it will impact the whole com-pany.

It is about looking at being as effi -cient as we can from an end-to-end point of view. Project Horizon should free up a lot of our accountants to be much more forward looking and become service providers to the business rather than historic book-keepers.

What excites you about being in this new role?James set a vision for the FIN team to be the best fi nancial partners to the best airline in the world, and that in itself is quite exciting – it gives you scope to do things diff erently. And I have the advantage of working with a great team.

Being part of the airline’s growth process will also be very exciting.

5

Search for the face of Asia Miles

Fashion leap for charity eventThe CX and Swire Paci� c-sponsored Life Education Activity Programme (LEAP) held a stylish event, the “88,000 Reasons to Celebrate – a Vivienne Tam Charity Fashion Show”, on 3 December to raise funds for the charity. CX cabin crew were featured in the fashion parade.

For the � rst time, renowned fashion designer Vivienne Tam helped raise funds for a local charity by showcasing her latest designs – the Spring/Summer 2012 “Zen Garden” collection. The event was held at the Peak residence of Chairman Chris Pratt.

Chris was joined by his wife Francesca Pratt, a former LEAP Chairman, as well as current LEAP Chairman Quince Chong, to support the fundraiser.

“We support LEAP because we believe its preventive drug education programmes are making a very real di� erence to the future well-being of Hong Kong’s young people,” Chris said.

LEAP has reached about 88,000 students in both of the past two academic years in its preventive drug education work.

The fundraising e� ort will continue into 2012 with a specially-designed Vivienne Tam tote bag being sold on � ights during the � rst quarter, with all proceeds going to LEAP.

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Asia Miles targets more non-air redemptions, more active members

Expansion in viewExpanding recruitment, activating members, growing the Mainland China market and extending non-air redemption items are just some of the things Director & General Man-ager Asia Miles Stephen Wong will be concentrating on in 2012.

“There’s a lot to focus on!” he says. “On the membership side, if you

look at our passenger profi le you can see a number of CX and KA pas-sengers who are entitled to earn miles but aren’t doing so. We need to turn those fl yers into our mem-bers,” Stephen adds.

“We also want to help the outport teams to make recruitment easier at diff erent touch points and ensure we have the tools to help them do a better recruitment job.”

Once members are on board, they then need to be encouraged to “earn and burn”.

“As Asia Miles has diversifi ed, we are looking at increasing the op-tions for members to earn and burn with both air and non-air items, and we’ve been working on getting that

message across,” Stephen says. “Early on when we fi rst developed

the programme the focus was on air rewards but, over the past few years, we have put a considerable eff ort into the non-air items and the re-sponse has been very positive.

An innovative online photo cam-paign was launched in October to � nd an Asia Miles Ambassador in Mainland China.

Members were asked to incor-porate their own pictures into one of eight photo frames created by renowned illustrators such as Dorothy Tang and then ask their friends to vote for them.

The campaign ran until 23 No-vember and attracted 230 entries, with the top photo receiving 10,000 votes. The minisite at-tracted more than 800,000 visits.

“China is a key market for us with a lot of growth potential,” says Director & General Manager Asia Miles Stephen Wong.

“We expect that market to grow by approximately 30% in 2012,” he adds.

The winner will become the face of the 2012 Asia Miles cam-paign and be � own to Hong Kong for a photo shoot, which will be featured in some of Mainland China’s top fashion magazines.

He or she will also win 80,000 Asia Miles.

“It’s great to see this as it also lessens the dependence on the air reward side,” he adds.

Stephen says in key markets the shift to non-air redemption is now about 30%, going up to 80%.

“The trend is especially clear in

the long-haul markets,” he says. As part of the commitment to

growing this sector, four staff have joined the non-air recruitment team, taking it to eight members.

“It needs more work in terms of partnership development and you need the resources to talk to po-tential partners and be strategic in whom to talk to.

“Ideally you want a partner that has global presence and have one deal that covers six or seven diff er-ent countries,” Stephen says.

Brand awareness and recruitment in China is another focus, though Asia Miles faces stiff competition from the big three domestic carri-ers.

“It’s a big country and media costs are expensive, so you have to be cre-ative,” Stephen says.

“But we have a special proposi-tion of off ering 20 partners as well as four carriers – Cathay Pacifi c, Dragonair, Air China and China East-ern – that they can all earn miles from,” he adds.

MILES TO GO: Stephen has big plans for the loyalty programme in 2012.

Service withheart

“I would like to pass on my mother’s thanks and gratitude for your desire to help and real sympathy towards her.

She had a very comfortable journey and was very well looked after from the moment she checked in and throughout the fl ight.

Since deal-ing with you, my family has fl own with CX six times and will continue to do so. You are a credit to the company.”

Customer Relations Executive James Pau turned a family into loyal passen-gers because of the excel-lent service he rendered.

Letters to the Editor

glasses. They don’t feel cramped or jerry-built and they just seem to fi t me.

I spent 18 hours in the new seat recently to New York on my way to a Harvard Busi-ness School reunion, and when I landed I really didn’t want to leave it. And I don’t usually talk this way about a product.

If I wracked my brains, as I did for 18 hours, I couldn’t think of a way that I could improve them.

Richard Harris, Quam Asset Management

More companion fl exibility, pleaseCurrently, single staff members can only make changes to their nominated travel companion once every two years.

I know that many airlines have no restrictions on single staff members changing their travel companions.

Is it possible that with the implementation of PSS this restriction could be lifted, or at least reduced to either six or 12 months?

Dennis Voak,CGO

Bob Nipperess, Employee Services Manag-er, replies: Over the years we have provided a number of options within the companion travel scheme including additional numbers of sectors and shorter lock-in periods.

Sadly, we encountered problems that se-verely undermined the integrity of the whole companion scheme. Those employees who were identifi ed as breaching the policy were re-ported to the relevant authorities, resulting in prosecution or even imprisonment.

In the light of this, the company sought ad-vice from Hong Kong’s offi cial anti-corruption

Cathay has got it right!The following letter was sent to Cathay Paci� c recently by a very impressed passenger.As a fairly frequent sampler of the world’s airline industry, I have to say that I think Cathay have really got it right with the new Business Class seats.

For the fi rst time in my life, which includes a lot of travelling, I would pay myself to fl y Business Class.

The fact that the new seats are smaller versions of the First Class seats (which I have sampled sev-eral times this year – heaven) is cool, but they are also so beau-tifully designed.

There is fi nally room for everything. They are iPad savvy. Everything is in the right place. I found it hard to lose any-thing, especially my

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Send us your feedbackWe welcome feedback from anyone in the CX network on any issue a� ecting the airline or the industry. Please email your letters to CCD#SCT. Not all letters will be published but those that are will be edited for length and to comply with the CX World style.

The sender of the star letter each month will win 3,000 Asia Miles. The Feedback page is sponsored by Asia’s leading travel reward programme.

I read in the oneworld news bulletin that BA has introduced electric buses to take its staff to and from Heathrow (pictured). Shouldn’t we be doing the same?

I know we already have a few small elec-tric vehicles at Hong Kong airport, but are we looking at turning the HAS buses and other vehicles into an all-electric fl eet?

Name withheld

Evelyn Chan, Environment Projects Man-ager, replies: HAS, the wholly owned sub-sidiary that runs our crew transport, has the largest vehicle fl eet in the CX Group.

HAS is steadily replacing its fl eet of 537 vehicles, 23% of which now comprises lower-emission vehicles that meet higher standards, including seven Euro 4 type ve-hicles and 117 electric vehicles.

The latter are mainly for baggage handling

6

Star letter

The Toronto Offi ce helped reunite a young passenger with his favourite gadgets by ensuring some lost lug-gage made it safely home.“My seven-year-old son lost his bag on CX6829 from Chengdu to Hong Kong before our connecting fl ight CX826 to Toronto the same day.

The CX Toronto Offi ce offered great service in helping us fi nd the bag and delivering it to our home in Toronto. My son was so happy to see his DS game box and USP again.

My family and I will continue to fl y with Cathay Pacifi c and I will also recommend you to all my friends and tell them about our wonderful experience.”

Ms Wu Yun-feng was on board CX748 from Johannesburg to Hong Kong when she suffered a gastrorrhagia (stomach haemorrhage) and lost con-sciousness.

The crew found a doctor onboard and the plane was diverted to Bandara-naike International Airport in Sri Lanka.

“Ms Wu has covered and returned home now. The timeliness and thought-ful service your staff showed in taking care of her during the fl ight as well as during her stay in the hospital was greatly appreciated by Ms Wu and her family,” the letter said.

“We would like to extend our heart-felt thanks to Cathay Pacifi c Airways, the crew of CX748 and the CX offi ce in Colombo for their aid.”

The CX Sri Lanka team received a thank you letter from the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China after they assisted a sick passenger on 6 October.

and not for crew transport at the moment. There are ongoing discussions with the

Airport Authority on the infrastructural re-quirements of using electric vehicles more widely around the airport community.

Get plugged in

In the meantime, HAS will phase out all pre-Euro and Euro 1 cars in 2011 and is also continuously looking for ways it can im-prove the environmental performance of its fl eet.

body, the ICAC. Following their recommen-dations, the present arrangements were introduced.

We recognise that our companion scheme arrangements are diff erent to some other carriers, but each airline oper-ates its policies in light of its own particular circumstances.

At CX we need to balance the overall ob-jectives of providing an appropriate level of access while at the same time minimis-ing opportunities for abuse.

That said, if we can make changes that do not upset this balance, we will do so.

Call to prayer

I’m not sure how many Muslim staff there are at Cathay City, but it would be great if there was a prayer room for them to use in the building. Would it be possible to create one?

Name withheld

John Arnold, Manager Property & Services, replies: I am also not sure how many Muslim staff are at Cathay City. However, over the last few years there have not been any formal requests to create a prayer room.

Such a use is not permitted under the sub-lease granted to CX by the Airport Authority and a formal application would need to be submitted. I am not sure what the Authority’s reaction would be and what conditions they might attach in the event that they consent to a prayer room.

Another concern is the lack of space within Cathay City, with the demand for more offi ces increasing as the airline expands.

Whipping up a storm Could the company please clarify the guidelines for reporting for work at Cathay City after the Number 8 typhoon signal has been raised?

Letters to the Editor

7

Good Samaritans in NanjingKA PEOPLE

Customer Services O� cer Brian Xu was on his way to work on 30 October when he spotted an old man lying prostrate under his tricycle on a motorway near the Nanjing Lukou International Airport. His response was instinctual.

Calling out to his colleague, Airport O� ce Assistant Jimmy Wang, to pull over, Brian stepped out of the car and helped the injured senior to his feet.

‘It was very early in the morning and still quite dark,” Brian recalls. “The man was obviously in pain. We stopped to help because we didn’t want him to be hit by the cars that were speeding along.”

However, their good intentions were mistaken for a hit-and-run incident. Luckily, their encounter with the old man was captured on a police surveillance camera that clearly showed the elderly tricycle driver toppling over on his own, and the KA team coming to his rescue a minute later.

“What we did seemed natural and I believe other colleagues would do the same,” Brian says.

The incident has not changed his desire to help the needy,

although he may be more cau-tious in future.

“I’ll de� nitely volunteer my help if the same situ-ation arises again,” Brian says.

The latest batch of Dragonair Aviation Cer-tifi cate Programme (DACP) participants gradu-ated on 2 December with Director General of Civil Aviation Norman Lo present to congratu-late the 24 young people.

The initiative is jointly organised by KA and the Hong Kong Air Cadet Corps and, for the fi rst time, members of the public were admit-ted to the programme alongside members of the HKACC.

The programme, now in its sixth year, off ers the participants a practical platform to explore the fascinating and multi-faceted world of avi-ation. CEO Patrick Yeung said over the years it was easy to see the impact the DACP had had on the aviation industry.

“Close to 30% of the graduates have joined

the industry, serving in various aspects in-cluding air traffi c control, aircraft engineering, ground handling and of course, as fl ight at-tendants and professional pilots,” Patrick said.

Participant Cyrus Wong, who aspires to be a pilot, said his favourite memory was the meet-ings with his pilot mentor.

“It was an unforgettable experience,” he says.

Another participant, Simon Ng, says he ap-preciated the opportunities the programme provided him with.

“Despite being part of an aviation club at school, I never had much interaction with pi-lots. No other programme off ered this. I was very keen to get to know a pilot and to benefi t from their experience,” Simon says.

On IntraCX, the guidelines and require-ments for operational staff and cabin crew are very clearly stated, but there is ambigu-ity regarding the need for ground staff to travel into work.

It simply says: “Department Heads need to ensure that the essential staff have reported for duty”. This is wide open to interpretation and, frankly, abuse by lower-level managers who may take it upon themselves to request that their own team comes into work, essential or otherwise.

Is it possible to clarify who has the fi nal say on who “essential staff ” are, and what criteria are used?

Given the wide variety of mobile devices and computer access available, surely CX can trust offi ce staff to work independently from home?

And, as it is often dangerous and expen-sive to travel during a typhoon, does CX off er any compensation in the event of an accident?

Name withheld

Jodi Kwok, Personnel Manager – Systems & Policies, replies: While operational em-ployees, including roster duty ground staff , cabin crew and fl ight crew, are required to report for duty even when the Number 8 typhoon signal has been hoisted, some non-operational departments may also need a skeleton staff manning the offi ce to support the operation during typhoons.

If necessary, department heads can nom-inate some essential staff to report for duty in the light of operational demands. It is our utmost concern to ensure our employ-ees’ safety while maintaining operations.

In the event that an employee is hav-ing diffi culties in returning to work due to adverse road conditions after the typhoon signal has been hoisted, they should notify the department immediately.

Check-in bluesI was holding a Business Class ID ticket and tried to use the Business Class counter at Kaohsiung to check in for my Dragonair fl ight. However, the ground staff refused to help and asked me to line up at the Economy Class check-in counter.

According to the check-in policy on IntraCX, “if there is no specifi c staff check-in counter please use the regular check-in counter, according to the intended class of travel”.

So which counter should I have used at KHH airport?

Name withheld

Boris Cheng, Assistant Manager Air-port Standards, replies: The information provided in the Travel Desk Leisure Travel Policy provides up-to-date general policy information for staff travellers.

Given that the local environment var-ies among airports, the actual situation on the day may require staff passengers holding Business Class staff tickets to check in at a counter other than the des-ignated Business Class counter.

The objective for such a requirement should be to minimise queuing time for both revenue and non-revenue customers.

READY TO HELP: Brian (second from right) with his airport colleagues (from left) Ada Zhang, Jimmy Wan and Ting Feng who were all with him

during the encounter.

Programme makes dreams come true

READY TO GO: Norman Lo (second row, centre) and Patrick Yeung (second row, fourth from right) congratulate the latest batch of DACP graduates.

Cleaning up HK’s beaches

8

A stretch of Hong Kong’s coastline is now much cleaner, thanks to the efforts of the 64 CX volunteers who participated in the annual International Coastal Cleanup event (ICC) on Lantau Island on 5 November.

The staff and family members braved the heat to remove close to 1,000kg of rubbish from Tong Fuk Beach and Shui Hau Flats.

Waste found included bottles, fl ip fl ops, plastic bags, fi shing nets and a PC monitor case.

ICC is a worldwide initiative launched by the Ocean Conservancy.

Debris collected from around the world is analysed each year and the information will be used to educate the public, governments and businesses.

Manager Purchasing and Lantau resident Michael Pratt, who has taken part in the ICC with CX volunteers since 2009, says it was hugely rewarding to see the dif-ference they have made on the beaches.

“Some of the same people have been coming year after year – it’s brilliant,” says Mi-chael.

“It’s back-breaking work, but people won’t turn up again and again if they don’t get something out of it.

“Everybody who took part had a good feel-ing. This comes from knowing that we have helped Hong Kong,” he adds.

Data regarding the debris collected by CX Volunteers will be passed to the Green Coun-

cil, the ICC Coor-dinator in Hong Kong, which will then compile the information submitted by all participat-ing units into a report.

A regular column highlighting the airline’s commitment

to the community

Cathay Pacif ic cares

dinator in Hong Kong, which will then compile the information submitted by all participat-ing units into a report.

The new Boeing 747-8 Freighters have had a smooth entry into service, fl ying around the region to get various teams acquainted with the new type and causing a fl urry of excitement amongst plane-spotters in various ports.

One Dash 8 that’s really been getting the shutterbugs drooling is B-LJA, which arrived in Hong Kong on 16 November resplendent with a new name and a one-off eye-catching livery.

Actually, the name, Hong Kong Trader, is not new at all – it was the moniker attached to CX’s fi rst Boeing 747 freighter which arrived in 1982 and kick-started the airline’s development into the world’s biggest international air cargo carrier (see story on opposite page).

The original Hong Kong Trader was not that special to look at – merely dressed in the airline’s standard livery at that time with the aircraft name painted in rather delicate lettering under the cockpit window.

By contrast, the new Hong Kong Trader is a bold and brash statement about CX’s cargo-carrying capabilities and the position of its home city as one of the world’s world great trading centres.

The original idea for a unique livery on the new aircraft came from then Director Cargo Rupert Hogg, and former Chief Executive Tony Tyler suggested recycling the Hong Kong Trader name.

Daniel Heung, Marketing Services Manager, who was tasked with developing the livery, says the aim was to convey the evolution of CX’s cargo business over the past three decades.

“The main colour theme, with a transition from light grey to a darker blue colour, represents the transition in our business over time,” he says.

Unlike the 1982 version, this time the lettering is bold and in-your-face. “We wanted something that matches with our cargo business – strong, stable and reliable,”

says Daniel. “The most striking element of the livery, an etching of the modern Hong Kong skyline, is

recognisable around the world and echoes both the name and purpose of the Hong Kong Trader aircraft,” he adds.

Painting the aircraft took just over a week, involving teams of 14 Boeing employees working 24-hour shifts – about twice as long as to paint a normal CX livery.

With the help of Teague and Associates, the Boeing team converted a highly detailed photograph-like image to the intricate Hong Kong skyline and water refl ection painted onto the aircraft – a task involving a lot of hand-drawn graphic work.

While Hong Kong Trader made a big splash, the fourth Dash 8 arrived quietly on 12 December – making CX the world’s biggest operator at this time!

The fi rst three arrivals are scheduled to begin ultra-long-haul services to North America beginning 14 December.

Trading on the future – and past

EARNING ITS WAY: Director Cargo Nick Rhodes (right) puts the fi nishing touches to the livery before Hong Kong Trader made its fi rst revenue fl ight from Hong Kong to Narita and Taipei (above and below).

before Hong Kong Trader made its fi rst revenue fl ight from Hong Kong to Narita

Plane spotters rush to get a glimpse of the special-liveried Hong Kong Trader as it enters service

To celebrate the arrival of Cathay Paci� c’s � rst Boeing 747-8 freighter as well as the delivery of the special-livery Hong Kong Trader, CX World has � ve standard 747-8F models and � ve special livery models to give away. The models are 1:400 scale and made of die-cast metal.

To enter, the lucky draw, please send an email to Sta� Communication Team Group (CCD#SCT) with the subject

line “Freighter” by 31 December and tell us the name of the tallest building in the skyline featured on the Hong Kong Trader livery.

Win your own

Dash 8 model!

World has � ve standard 747-8F models and � ve World has � ve standard 747-8F models and � ve Worldspecial livery models to give away. The models are 1:400 scale and made of die-cast metal.

To enter, the lucky draw, please send an email to Sta� Communication Team Group (CCD#SCT) with the subject

line “Freighter” by 31 December and tell us the name of the tallest building in the skyline featured on the Hong Kong Trader livery.

special livery models to give away. The models are 1:400 scale and

To enter, the lucky draw, please send an email to Sta� Communication Team Group (CCD#SCT) with the subject

line “Freighter” by 31 December and tell us the name of

9

Trading on the future – and pastPlane spotters rush to get a glimpse of the special-liveried Hong Kong Trader as it enters service

Original Trader paved the way for CX’sleading cargo role

The � rst dedicated freighter in the CX � eet, a Boeing 707-320C, arrived in 1976 and � ew around the region for the next six years.

But it was the arrival of the � rst Boeing 747 Freighter in 1982 that really marked CX’s beginning as a serious player in the air cargo world – and the aircraft was given a name, Hong Kong Trader, to convey the leading role it would play in the revitalisation of Hong Kong’s foreign trade.

“We decided emphatically that our commitment to air-freight was a long-term one and that the next step was the choice of a replacement for the 707F. The logical choice was a 747 freighter,” said Robert Atkinson, Cargo Sales Manager at the time.

VR-HVY was actually a second-hand purchase, bought from British Airways when its cargo division was wound up, and it went through a big overhaul at HAECO to convert it to CX speci� cations.

HK Trader was “christened” in a ceremony at Kai Tak on 30 April 1982 led by Lady YK Kan, with the festivities enriched by “two lovely Hong Kong ladies lowered from the aircraft in an AQ6 [unit load device]”.

The aircraft went into service that same night, carrying more than 100 tonnes to Europe and putting CX on a path to becoming the world’s biggest international air cargo carrier.

Chicago bash marks year of good workIt was Chicago all the way when the Philippine Cabin Crew Chari-ties Inc (PCCCI) celebrated turn-ing one on 4 November.

The party, held at Valle Verde Six Clubhouse in Manila, had a Roaring 20s theme with more than 150 guests dressing up in the tradition of the Great Gatsby.

Showing their support by joining the members for the event were General Manager Cabin Crew Liza Ng, Cabin Crew Line Manager – ISM & SP Kevin Ip and Cabin Crew Man-ager Steven Tsang, with Country Manager Philippines Martin Xu also dropping by.

“It was great to see them there,” says one of the PCCCI organisers, Infl ight Service Manager Adelaida Padua.

The PCCCI supports fi ve students attending the University of the Philippines Integrated School (UPIS) and has a similar arrangement with the University of the Philippines in the Visayas.

“The students are given a monthly stipend to meet their school ex-penses and we meet up with them as much as possible as well as moni-tor their progress via school reports,” Adelaida says.

“The students also came to the event and it was a great chance for them to meet the members. They mentioned how touched they were by the generosity shown to them, which has allowed them continue their education. I hope it will also inspire them to help others,” she adds.

In its fi rst year, the PCCCI has also done community outreach in the form of feeding programmes and Christmas visits in the Philippines. More events are being planned for 2012 to help fund the projects and perhaps expand the reach to more students.

“There are 10 core organisers doing the legwork and sending mes-sages out, and it’s a lot of work to fi t around our schedules,” Adelaida says. “But it’s worth it.”

Membership has been growing steadily with more than 150 paid-up members, most of them active or retired cabin crew.

“We also have about 360 fans on the Facebook page,” Adelaida says. “Some are retired crew in Sydney, Toronto and Vancouver. This network is wasted if you don’t tap into it and you’d be amazed at the way they can get organised in their country and help out.”

Search for “PCCCI friends” on Facebook for more information.

SHOWING THEY CARE: The students being helped by the PCCCI thanked their sponsors at the Chicago-themed party (above). Members got into the spirit of the occasion (below).

10

Japan recovery on courseOsaka the star performer as passenger numbers get back on trackTraveller numbers between Hong Kong and Japan have recovered since the March earthquake, with routes back in full service and posi-tive passenger growth recorded for the first time since the disaster.

“In November, all our Japan routes except Tokyo surpassed their revenue performance of last year,” says General Manager Sales, Pearl River Delta & Hong Kong Chitty Cheung.

“Positive growth for passenger numbers was recorded for both Oc-tober and November,” she adds.

The Osaka route has emerged as the star performer, with Marketing & Sales Manager Japan James Ev-ans saying revenue from the Osaka route for the year to date is well above 2010.

“The disaster had a different im-pact across Japan, and Osaka was relatively less affected than other cities such as Tokyo,” says James.

“In fact, there were many cases of companies moving offices tempo-rarily to Osaka,” he adds.

James says a quick rebound in Tokyo, which is CX’s biggest market in Japan, would be important to the overall market recovery.

“While Economy Class showed a dip, revenue from the front end grew from April to September, with August and September proving to be particularly strong,” he says.

James attributed Japan’s quick recovery to a string of promotional campaigns that helped rebuild de-mand for Japan, including the two CX initiatives – “We Love Japan” and

Briefings help outports get PSS-ready Staff from outports have been tak-ing advantage of a series of brief-ings being conducted by the PSS team to clarify details of their role during and after the cutover.

Programme Managers Sonja Nig-mann and Robert Weider have con-ducted briefings in Tokyo, Singa-pore, Vancouver, London, Colombo, San Francisco and Sydney. Taiwan, Korea and Hong Kong-based staff were briefed in Hong Kong, while China staff were briefed in Shanghai and Beijing in Putonghua.

“We had a goal to reach 90% of the PSS coordinators around the world, which is over 140 people. We achieved that goal and at times even had General and Country Managers showing up for the briefings want-ing to learn more,” says Robert.

The team is using the briefings to demystify the PSS coordinator’s role and to ensure they are feeling com-fortable.

“We want the coordinators to fo-

Peter Langslow, General Manager Cargo Services

What is the main part of your job? The job of Cargo Services is to deliver the world’s highest stan-dards of safety as well as opera-tional and service excellence, and my role in this endeavour is to direct, support and challenge the teams in Cargo Services, in Hong Kong and around the world.

An important part of the job is to ensure we prepare and adapt well to the changes we face – new aircraft types with the Dash-8 freighter, new systems with the ALPS freighter load control system, the new Cargo Terminal opening at HKIA in 2013, the transformation from paper to e-freight, and the constant regu-latory changes impacting safety and security and customs.

What is your training/ background? A history degree a long time ago! And 26 years with CX, of which 14 have been in outports, and the last seven in other service and operational areas.

What do you like best about your job? I like the fact that operational and service quality is so central to what we do as an airline; and that this is as true in cargo as in the passenger side of the business.

It’s all about people – and we have a great team at CX.

The fact that the effect of what we do (for better or worse!) is im-mediately apparent in the perfor-mance results we obtain, so the feedback loop is always there.

And it is never boring!

What is the most challeng-ing part of your job? We operate in a vital and com-plex, but constrained, part of the business. The task is always – and inevitably – to achieve higher standards, but we do not have limitless resources.

People who have worked with me before know that I manage by asking basic questions.

I try to build for myself a com-prehensible mental model of how things work and why, and then challenge the team to consider new or alternative approaches that may be worth exploring.

WHAT I DO

“Hong Kong Style” – as well as media familiarisation trips and Getaway Surprise! packages, which all helped to stimulate the demand for travel.

Moving forward, CX will oper-ate extra sectors to Sapporo and Osaka over Christmas.

Chitty foresees that Osaka will continue to lead the race among Japan routes, and expects Tokyo to remain relatively weak over the festive season.

“This year, the most popular Christmas holiday destinations for Hong Kong people are Korea, Taiwan and Southeast Asia,” says Chitty.

“Some of the Tokyo demand has been shifted to other regional des-tinations over Christmas.”

cus on getting the staff trained up and ready and on support during the cutover, rather than focus on what is beyond their control,” he says.

“As we’ve gone around, we’ve gotten a better idea of what the real concerns are in the outports and we have been able to address them in follow-up presentations and through the FAQs that are avail-able on the PSS Coordinators Share-point,” Sonja says.

“So the questions have moved on from ‘what and when is the cutover?,’ to asking specific questions on how the systems will work during and after cutover. Ports have a good grasp of what their own actions will be during the process so their big-ger concerns are around the system support,” she adds.

After the London briefing, Passen-ger Services Officer/Airport Trainer Andrew Franklin said it was good to have the Europe staff together to

LEARNING CURVE: Robert and Sonja (front left) answer questions from staff during the London briefing.

learn from each other see what sta-tus everyone was at.

“It helps us be more prepared as a team,” he said.

Manager on Duty – Singapore

Jeyanthi V, said: “Overall, the briefing was very fruitful as the group was small and more interactive. We also had the opportunity to exchange ideas and learn from each other.”

Celebrating a landmark moment for a great engineThe Cathay Pacific Group is now the world’s biggest operator of the Trent 700 engine produced by Rolls-Royce and, on 14 November, CX took delivery of the manufacturer’s 1,000th engine.

The airline group currently operates 48 Trent-powered A330-300 aircraft and has another 19 on firm order. The 1,000th engine will be deployed on the airline’s A330 fleet of passenger aircraft.

Engineering Director Chris Gibbs joined Rolls-Royce Chief Operating Officer – Civil Aerospace Eric Schulz and Airbus A330 Chief Engineer Christian Favre at a special ceremoy for the handover of the 1,000th engine.

Chris (pictured left with Eric) says the product has been a success story for CX. “The Trent 700-powered Airbus A330 is a world-beating engine-airframe combination that has achieved success as a result of its excellent commercial performance and passenger appeal over short- to medium-range missions. The Trent-powered A330 will go down as one of the most successful aircraft of all time,” he says.

11

Airline gets ready for EU emissions schemeCX ready for 1 January start despite opposition to the scheme

Departments throughout Cathay Pacific are getting ready for the implementation of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) which starts on 1 January.

From that date, all flights arriving and landing in the European Union will be part of the scheme and all carbon dioxide (CO

2) emitted by

airlines will need to be covered by a carbon credit.

CO2 emissions are based on the

amount of fuel burned, with CO2

calculated as 3.15 times more than fuel.

How does the emissions trading scheme work?Emissions from the airline industry will be capped by 97% in 2012 and 95% in 2013 to 2020 based on the industry’s average 2004-2006 emis-sions in Europe, which is roughly around 220 million tonnes of CO

2.

Free allowances known as EU aviation allowances (EUAAs) will be given to airlines, which will total 85% of capped emissions in 2012 and 82% in 2013 to 2020.

Free allowances were allocated based on an airline’s share of the to-tal tonne kilometres of airlines oper-ating to the EU.

The rest will be auctioned by EU states; while in 2013 to 2020, 3% will be set aside for new airlines operat-ing into the EU or those considered as “fastest growing” airlines.

Exemptions will apply to airlines operating fewer than 234 flights for nine months, that emit less than 10,000 tonnes of CO

2 each year, or

that are obligated to be part of a similar emission trading scheme in their own country.

Airlines that emit more than the free allowances given to them will have to buy from the open market.

Only United Nations or EU-ap-proved carbon credits are allowed for use.

Why is the industry against the im-plementation of the EU ETS?IATA does not support regional emission trading schemes, instead

Alongside their formidable sales skills, the CX and KA teams attending the annual inflight retail gathering ISPY 2011 also showcased their sing-ing and dancing talent.

Every year, cabin crew from dif-ferent airlines gather at the Inflight Salesperson of the Year event (ISPY) to train and compete with the aim of creating the best inflight sales cul-ture possible.

This year’s ISPY was held in Brigh-ton in the UK from 14-18 November with 83 cabin crew from 42 airlines attending, including CX Flight At-tendants Joyce Chen, Peggy Ho and Raynard Khor.

The participants took part in semi-nars, training workshops and met with suppliers over the four days.

“It was an inspiring and life-chang-

Crew spy retail opportunitiesing experience,” says Joyce.

The team’s hard work paid off at the award ceremony on the last night of the event with Raynard winning the gold award in the “Sales Generating PA” category while Peggy received silver in the “Product Merchandising” category.

“I have learnt so much about in-flight sales services from this pro-gramme and grown to be a much better person,” says Raynard.

The three then teamed up with the Dragonair participants to perform in the “ISPY’s Got Talents” competition.

The group’s song and dance num-ber combined a safety demonstra-tion, a showcase of some inflight sales products and the new uniform, all while dancing to Robbie William’s Feel and Justin Bieber’s Baby. SALE TIME: The CX and KA teams celebrate a successful ISPY.

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

n Thai appeal raises HK$1.2 millionA company appeal to help those affected by the devastating floods in Thailand raised almost HK$1.2 million.

A month-long fundrais-ing appeal was launched on 1 November, with the company matching every dollar donated by CX and KA staff – HK$548,011 and HK$51,642 respectively.

All proceeds will go to Hong Kong Red Cross, which is work-ing with the Thai Red Cross Society to assist the relief effort in Thailand.

n AA ‘business as usual’American Airlines remains an active oneworld member while it undergoes court-supervised restructuring.

The group took the step vol-untarily last month to “achieve a cost and debt structure that is competitive in the airline industry so that it can continue delivering a world-class travel experience for cus-tomers”.

The US carrier’s member-ship of the alliance continues unaffected, with its normal flight schedules operating, tickets and reserva-tions honoured as usual, and the AAdvantage frequent flyer pro-gramme continuing as before.

More information at www.aa.com/restructuring

n New Pedal Kart dates announcedThe Pedal Kart Grand Prix is now taking place on 11-12 February at Victoria Park in Hong Kong.

Those interested in participat-ing either as pedallers or helpers can contact Ivan Li (ENGITL) or Katie Man (ENGKYM).

n Inflight sales recordInflight sales reached a peak in October with year-on-year growth of 7.1% to set a new monthly record.

For the first 10 months of the year, sales climbed by 17% compared to the same period last year.

“Our success would not have been possible without the sup-port of the entire cabin crew community,” says Aldric Chau, Assistant Manager Inflight Sales Operations.

Briefs

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2,500nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

Fan blades have been replaced on the CX and KA Trent 700 fleet.

Emissions Cap in 2012 (97%)

Auction

Free allowance

Emissions Cap in 2013-2020 (95%)

Auction

Free allowance

85%

15%

82%

15%

Free Allowance

Auctioned Allowances

Note: Total EUAviation Emissions

3% as “special reserve”

Year 2012 Year 2013-2020

advocating a global scheme that takes into account the global oper-ating nature of the industry.

The industry also believes the EU has no jurisdiction on flights outside EU borders; that ETS is inconsistent with the provisions of the Chicago Convention; and money collected from auctioning does not have to be allocated to environmental projects.

How has Cathay Pacific prepared for the 1 January start?Head of Environmental Affairs Mark

Watson says: “Despite our strong public opposition to the imposition of the EU ETS to non-EU airlines due to concerns over competitive dis-tortion and lack of environmental benefits which will arise, we have complied fully with the scheme and have been working on ensuring that we are prepared for the onset of emissions trading.

“We are also committed to work-ing towards the goal of achieving a global deal to address international aviation emissions,” he adds.

NET

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Anniversary celebrations spread excitementWednesday, 26 October was a great moment for the Amsterdam team when they marked the route’s 25th anniversary by greeting passengers with a colourful balloon arch at Schiphol Airport and a gift of a wooden tulip and small birthday cakes with the 25th anniversary logo.

The check-in desks were decorated with balloons, rosettes and special banners saying “Serving Amsterdam for 25 years”.

The team held their own party on 24 November with industry partners, clients and Marco Polo Club members joining them.

Director Sales & Marketing Rupert Hogg flew over to join the event and was joined on stage by top tier MPO member Peter Marx, who talked about his experiences flying with CX since 1980.

Haneda team marks a year in businessThe Haneda Airport team held a party on 29 October to celebrate the � rst year of operation.

The event included gifts to sta� from the ground service partner to recognise their help over the past year.

On the lighter side, the group took part in an arm wrestling tournament and performed an entertaining group Maru Maru Mori Mori dance.

The Taipei team took part in a donation drive to help collect books for the Ping Tong Indig-enous Association of Culture and Education who will distribute them to the needy.

The event was promoted on CX social media channels in Taiwan and Facebook fans responded by donating 176 books out of the more than 1,400 which were eventually collected.

IND

IATA

IWA

NJA

PAN

For Sabrina Wei, travelling has been a dream that turned into reality since she joined Cathay Pa-cifi c as a Los Angeles-based cabin crew in 2008.

Sabrina is originally from Taiwan and has lived in Los Angeles for years.

She has been to so many places that it takes her a while to list them all: Turkey, Kenya, United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, France, UK, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, Do-minican Republic, Mexico, Thailand, Korea, Malaysia, China, Cambodia and Guam.

“I cannot settle in one place. I reckon travelling is in my blood. I like immersing myself in diff erent cultures – talking to locals about their daily lives and environment,” Sabrina says.

“Last year, I went to Kenya which is best to visit as part of a group tour as backpacking is not recommended. Kenya’s economy is booming and more stable political-wise com-pared to neighbour countries like Tanzania, Congo, and Ethiopia,” she adds.

Her favourite city is Paris. “Paris is so romantic. When you hear the French speak, it is so exotic and enchanting,” she says.

Sabrina highly recommends dining at the top of Eiff el Tower with its amazing view of the Seine River and the Pa-risian city lights.

Sabrina is planning to visit South America next – “I would love to go to Brazil and see its annual carnival”.

World traveller

PORT PEOPLE

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Marco Polo Club Gold member Mr Domanski received a delightful sur-prise when he checked in at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on 21 November for his fl ight on CX724 to Hong Kong.

Airport Services Supervisor Lillian Lim arranged for a small personalised cake to be presented to him and the team sang Happy Birthday as he blew out the candle.

Birthday surprise for loyal memberGrowing the South Asia team

Photo fun with Facebook contest Fans of the CX Australia Facebook page were given a chance to win a trip to see the Hong Kong Sevens 2012 including airfares, accommodation and event tickets.

The “Capture the Fun” competition which ran until 6 December, asked fans to submit photos showing them having fun with friends through Facebook, and the seven entries that receive the most votes, plus three judges’ selections, will make up the shortlist.

On the judging panel is ex-Australian rugby team captain George Gregan, General Manager Southwest Pacific Dane Cheng and Hong Kong Tourism Board Regional Director Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific Andrew Clark.

Marketing Communications Manager Australia Richiko Olrichs says the contest has seen the Facebook fan base grow from 8,960 to 13,470 with more than 260 entries received.

TRAVEL HOUND: The world is Sabrina’s oyster.

The India, Nepal and Bangladesh Passenger and Cargo Sales and Marketing Conference 2011 was held in the garden city of Bengaluru in October.

Director Sales & Marketing Rupert Hogg, Director Cargo Nick Rhodes and Dragonair CEO Patrick Yeung joined General Manager South Asia, Middle East & Africa Tom Wright for the event.

CEO CAPA India Kapil Kaul provided the team with an insightful talk on the direction of

the Indian aviation industry before the Cargo and Passenger teams split up to discuss strategies and plans for 2012.

At night, the teams put on regional performances, impressing the judges with

their talent, creativity and ingenuity.

Read all about it

14

CX‘s sportsmen and women have had a successful time lately with the darts, running and tai chi teams winning in competi-tions, while CX participants also did well in the annual Oxfam Trailwalker event.

On 6 November the CX Darts Team won the Inter-Hong Darts Tournament against seven other teams. CX’s Ng Tat-sing had the Highest Finish with 113 points while Andy Lau and Wilson Lyn tied for fastest game.

On the same day, CX ladies and men’s teams took part in the Inter-Hong Long Distance Run at Tai Mai Tuk against 14 oth-er teams. For the second successive year, the ladies team of Andrea Wilkerson, Iza Lorenzo, Clara Ng, Mallette De La Riva, Crystal Tse and Sally Wong took fi rst place.

On 22-23 October the Tai Chi Club took part in the 2011 Hong Kong Tai Chi Open Competition in Kowloon Park and won several group and individual awards including top place in the Group Event – Posture 24 (Ladies) and 14 gold medals and two silver medals in the individual Traditional Tai Chi Event. This won the team the Supreme Award Cup for achieving the highest score in the traditional tai chi.

This year’s Oxfam Trailwalker was on the weekend of 19 No-vember with four Asia Miles corporate teams participating in the competition.

In its 30th year, more than 3,300 people took part in the event.

All the teams battled adverse weather along the 100km trail, demonstrating team spirit and determination, with most of the CX staff fi nishing the event.

Golden time for sports teams

Bernie Lo, Business Analyst, IMTPrior to joining CX, Bernie worked in logis-tics for almost 10 years, where he accumu-lated experience in supply chain operation and system implementation.

“CX is such a big and healthy family,” says Bernie. “Everyone has their own expertise and supports each other whenever neces-sary.”

Bernie describes himself as an energetic person who enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking, rock climbing, cycling and marathon running. “But my favourite hobby is travelling, which is perhaps one of the reasons that led me to join CX,” he says.

Jennifer Kwong, Assistant Manager Catering Concept, Standards & Alignment, ISDJennifer spent six years creating menus and partaking in meal presentations for airline customers at LSG Lufthansa Service HK before joining the CX family.

“Being part of CX has always been my dream,” says Jennifer. “The company’s vision of striving to excel in everything it does makes me proud to be part of it.”

Apart from travelling, she enjoys eating out with her food-loving friends, which keeps her updated about dining trends.

CX World welcomes all

new staff. Here are a few who recently

came on board...

New Joiners

Laying down foundations in Yunnan

A group of staff spent the Chinese National Day holiday in Ning’er county in Yun-nan as volunteers with Habitat for Humanity to help rebuild homes for local vil-lagers.

From 3-8 October, Peonie Lo (MKT), Aldric Chau (ISD), Henry Ng (ISD), Quin-cy Yip (KA) and Louis Li (IAF), helped demolish buildings made unstable by the earthquake, laid the foundations for new homes, learned how to mix cement and moved bricks around the work site.

This was the fi rst time for all of them to be involved in a Habitat with Humanity project and Henry says it was a friend’s positive experience that encouraged him to join.

“I have always wanted to go on a charity trip to do something meaningful, and I was also encouraged after reading the stories in a book written by some of the CX volunteers,” he says. “After hearing about a friend’s experience with Habitat in Sichuan I was interested in joining the next project they were organising.”

“It’s a rare opportunity to contribute a little back to society,” Quincy adds. It wasn’t all fun and games, with the group throwing themselves wholeheart-

edly into the project. “Originally the bricks we had to move were stacked next to a site where work-

ers were digging a deep foundation, and they were about to collapse,” Peonie says.

“We spent the day transferring the bricks one by one and it reminded me of the little things we do day by day which may seem insignifi cant, but are often the most important.”

The volunteers also had a chance to see the impact they were having on the villagers’ lives.

“I remember the happy face of a granny when she received a Polaroid photo showing the smiling faces of the kids,” Henry says.

“We also had a celebrity travelling with us – Hong Kong singer and Habitat ambassador William Chan!” Peonie adds. HELPING OUT: The CX group, and a friend, got their hands dirty at the work site.

GOOD SPORTS: (Clockwise from left) the running teams; the tai chi competitors; one of the Asia Miles-sponsored Trailwalker teams; and the triumphant darts team.

VAMPING IT UP: Toronto Airport staff get in the spirit of Halloween.

WET ‘N’ WILD: Cabin crew had a fun time

at Ocean Park during an ISD outing.

STOP PRESS!: Quince Chong met with members of the Hong Kong Senior Journalists Association at Cathay City.

HALLOWEEN CAPERS: Ladybugs, a geisha, vampires

and even a protester turned up when the SFO offi ce

celebrated Halloween.

Securing a place in the Dragon Boat Club Crew World Champion-ships is hard enough for many teams.

Senior Captain Joel Crawford and his crew, the South Lantau Paddle Club (nicknamed “Buff aloes”), have managed to achieve that with a one-year-old team of mostly novice paddlers.

Fifteen team members are CX and KA staff , 11 of whom are fl ying crew, which means the Buff aloes has to overcome the added diffi -culty of juggling their training schedules with their rosters.

“Most people in the club had never paddled a dragon boat before we started last year,” says Joel.

That didn’t stop the Buff aloes from winning trophies, including a mixed champion trophy at Mui Wo this year and a hard-fought third place trophy for their ladies’ team at Discovery Bay.

The Buff aloes’ mixed over-40s team came fourth at the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Championships at Sha Tin in September, mak-ing them eligible to compete in next year’s Dragon Boat Club Crew World Championships.

The team has veteran coach Jan Volavka, who has steered several championship teams, to thank for their success.

The Buff aloes are stepping up their fi tness and training regime to prepare for the big race next year.

“We want to be more than just ‘also-rans,’ but it’s also important that everyone has a good time,” says Joel.

New dragon boat paddlershave a bullish time

To enter, visit the online quiz entry form on the CX World site. The deadline is noon on Friday, 6 January.

The QuizOur � rst prize this month is three nights in a deluxe room for two with bu� et breakfast at the New World Wuhan Hotel.

The hotel is part of the New World Centre, which includes the New World Department Store, located in the heart of the city’s business district.

The 327-room property includes two restaurants – The Café for all-day dining or The Chinese Restaurant with Cantonese, Wuhan and Sichuan

specialties – and a Poolside Garden recreation area. This oasis consists of an outdoor tennis court, outdoor

swimming pool and landscaped garden. Guests can also visit the health club, sauna and steam room for a relaxing time. Go to www.wuhan.newworldhotels.com for more information.

The second prize winner will receive an over-night stay with breakfast for two at the Cebu City Marriott Hotel.

The 301-room hotel is located in the city’s premier � nancial district next door to Ayala Mall and the Terraces for great shopping and nightlife.

Guests can sample all-day dining at the Garden Café; have light snacks and enjoy live entertainment at the Palm Lounge; and browse the a la carte menu and refreshing barbecue dinner bu� et at the Pool Bar.

The hotel also houses an outdoor swimming pool, � tness centre and sauna. For more information, visit www.marriott.com

Our � rst prize this month is three nights in a deluxe room for two with bu� et breakfast at the New World Wuhan Hotel.

Centre, which includes the New World Department Store, located in the heart of the city’s business district.

two restaurants – The Café for all-day dining or The Chinese Restaurant with Cantonese, Wuhan and Sichuan

specialties – and a Poolside Garden recreation area. This oasis consists of an outdoor tennis court, outdoor

swimming pool and landscaped garden. Guests can also visit

The hotel also houses an outdoor swimming pool, � tness centre

SEDAN SUCCESS: CX’s rock ’n’ roll themed chair came third in the annual

Sedan Chair Race.

WET ‘N’ WILD: Cabin crew had a fun time

FAREWELL: The Toronto team said goodbye to Manager Cargo Eastern Canada Kam Leung-au with an artistic gift.

NEW FRIENDS: CSO Mariecris Tuason’s daughter Athena chooses toys at CXcitement. chooses toys at CXcitement.

HELLO AND GOODBYE: The

Colombo team said farewell to

Andrew Pattison and welcomed

Edward Coles-Gale as Country

Manager Sri Lanka & Maldives.

SOCCER SHARING: CX Ladies Football Team Captain Barbara Lewis and goalkeeper Dona Luk had a session with the CLP ladies team.

16

The hills are alive

SHOW US YOUR TIPS!CX World welcomes sta� travel tips from across the network – email us at CCD#SCT

Travel bites

■ Viva Las Vegas!The Ravella Hotel Lake Las Vegas is o� ering 30% o� for CX

sta� until the end of January. The Mediterranean-inspired

property has the feel of the Old World with extensive gardens, upscale shops, din-ing, day spa and golf course.

Guests in the 314-room property can choose from the all-day dining Medici Café and Terrace, or dine al fresco at the Poolside Café and Terrace, while the Village area o� ers a range of cuisine from fresh seafood and wood-� red pizzas to spicy tacos and savoury tapas.

Go to Travel Desk for more information.

■ Wow moment in Sinulog The Sinulog Festival in Cebu is held on the third Sunday of January with a colourful street parade.

The participants wear brightly coloured costumes and dance to the rhythm of drums, trumpets and native gongs in a grand parade.

The day before the parade the Fluvial Proces-sion is held at dawn with a statue of the Santo Niño carried on a pump boat from Mandaue City to Cebu City, decked with hundreds of � owers and candles.

In the afternoon, a more solemn proces-sion takes place along the major streets of the city, which last for hours due to the large crowds participating in the event.

More information, at www.sinulog.ph/

■ Shopping spree As part of Visit Korea Year, the Korea Grand Sale is being held from 9 January to 29 Feb-ruary, with shops throughout the country o� ering bargains.

Overseas guests are eligible for additional special product discounts, free admission to leading attractions and gifts. Visit www.koreagrandsale.or.kr

This month’s contribution comes from ICM O� cer Kyle Yuen and was taken at Balanced Rock in Arches National Park in Utah.

“When you look up to the sky in an urban area you won’t see a scene like this,” Kyle says.

“Here the night view is amazing and you can clearly see the Milky Way stretching across the sky,” he ads.

Yet even in the middle of the Arches National Park, Kyle says it is possible to see the e� ect light pollution from a nearby town is having on being able to see the stars clearly.

“People usually cannot see the Milky Way nowa-days because of severe light pollution,” Kyle says.

HK$500 for a travel tale!

Every month, CX World invites all CX sta� to tell unusual, interesting or just downright quirky tales of travel moments around the world.

Sponsored by In� ight Sales, the lucky sender of the main story receives HK$500 worth of in� ight sales products of their choice from the ever-changing collection of over 260 items on o� er (excluding liquor and cigarettes).

Go shopping at www.cathaypaci� c.com/dutyfree

sender of the main story receives HK$500 worth of in� ight sales products of their choice from the ever-changing

(excluding liquor and

www.cathaypaci� c.

Snap happy

MOUNTAIN GLORY: The majestic Blue Mountains (main picture); John stops for a breather on his way to the bridge to visit the Three Sisters (above); and (below) the scenic cableway ride provides amazing views of the national park.

Customer Relations Executive John Lee went exploring around the Blue Mountains regionin New South Wales

What does Blue Mountain mean to you – a cup of freshly brewed coff ee? For me, it refers to a spectacular natural region of New South Wales.

Situated 110 kilometres west of Sydney, it takes about two hours by train to reach the Blue Mountain National Park region.

My visit took me to one of the best eco-parks within the World Heritage-listed Blue Mountains – Scenic World.

Originally the Katoomba Coal Mine, the area was converted into a tourist attraction featuring the world’s steepest railway, a spec-tacular cableway, a glass-fl oored skyway and a board walkway through an ancient rainfor-est.

Purchasing the Lyrebird Pass is the most cost-eff ective way to enjoy each of the three scenic rides in addition to having unlimited hop-on, hop-off privileges on the Blue Moun-

tain Explorer bus service throughout the day.One of the loveliest sights in the Blue Moun-

tains is the Three Sisters, and the best viewing spot for this rock formation is Echo Point.

The more adventurous can pay the “sisters” a direct visit via the giant stairway, which is breathtakingly steep but connects to a steel bridge leading to the tallest “sister”, Meehni.

The Blue Mountains are also famous for wa-terfalls and cascades, with the Leura Cascades being the easiest to visit.

Experienced hikers should aim for the Brid-al Veil Falls where sheets of water run down rocky edges like, well, a bridal veil.

Finally, if you are looking for a souvenir of your visit then head for Leura Mall in the middle of historic Leura village. The mall has restaurants, cafes and coff ee shops to relax in as well as a range of boutiques and antique shops to browse through.