A Cathay Pacific flight from London to Hong Kong kept passengers on the tarmac for five hours, then vacated them from plane due to “technical issues”, with the carrier offering them an alternative flight departing a day later, the Post has learned.
The city flag carrier apologised on Thursday for the abortive flight the previous day and said the faulty plane would be transported back to Hong Kong after maintenance, with no customers on board.
The incident was revealed after a passenger on board flight CX250, which was scheduled to depart from London’s Heathrow Airport to Hong Kong on Wednesday at 6.20pm UK time, shared the situation with the Post.
The passenger, who asked to remain anonymous, said passengers were told there was a problem with the engine, but it was not until around 11pm that they were instructed to disembark because the issue could not be fixed.
As a result, all passengers had to go back through immigration to collect their luggage, and were offered a one-night stay by the airline at the airport hotel.
The passenger who spoke to the Post said the delay was “annoying” because the flight cancellation meant she would have to take the alternative flight scheduled to depart on Thursday evening, causing her to miss work on Friday.
Her rescheduled flight is set to take off at 6.20pm UK time on Thursday and arrive in Hong Kong on Friday at 2.05pm.
But according to the Cathay Pacific’s website, the rescheduled flight will also be delayed by over two hours, departing London at 8.50pm and arriving in Hong Kong on Friday at 3.54pm local time.
The airline said the delay of the original flight was caused by a “technical issue”.
“The safety of our customers and crew guides every decision we make,” it said. “We sincerely apologise to our affected customers for the inconvenience caused and appreciate their understanding.”
The company said they had kept customers regularly informed of the situation on the original flight and had provided meal services while inspection work was being conducted.