Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd has resumed recruiting pilots with residency rights in the territory as part of medium- to long-term planning, the airline said on Tuesday, despite having much of its fleet parked due to the pandemic.
The move, which came just weeks after Cathay said it would close a pilot base in Canada and hours before the airline on Tuesday evening said it would proceed with plans to shut its pilot bases in Australia, points to a move away from a long-term strategy of employing many expatriates.
Last year Cathay closed its regional arm Cathay Dragon, putting hundreds of pilots out of work, many of them citizens and permanent residents in Hong Kong.
