HONG KONG: Cathay Pacific has fired three cargo pilots who were infected with Covid-19 in Frankfurt after an internal investigation by the Hong Kong carrier found the trio were involved in a "serious breach" while overseas.
In a statement on Thursday afternoon, Hong Kong's flagship airline did not say what the breach was. However, a company source said the trio were suspected of leaving their hotel rooms.
"After investigation into these cases, regrettably, the findings indicate a serious breach of requirements during crew overseas layovers. The individuals concerned are no longer employed by Cathay Pacific," the statement said.
The three infections among the quarantine-exempt cargo pilots caused more than 150 Cathay staff to be quarantined. Many more close contacts were sent to a government isolation facility at Penny's Bay.
More than 120 pupils at Discovery Bay International school, where the wife of one pilot teaches and two sons attend, were also quarantined. About 70 friends and colleagues of the first two pilots infected were put in isolation.
"We acknowledge the impact these incidents have had on all of our people, their families and the community, especially those who are now being quarantined at a government facility," the airline said.
Two of the pilots, aged 29 and 57, were confirmed infected on Nov 10. They had claimed during an epidemiological investigation by health authorities that they did not leave their rooms during their stay in the German hotel and did not participate in any gatherings.
Under the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance, anyone knowingly providing false or misleading information, including on their whereabouts, contact with others or medical history, faces a HK$10,000 fine and up to six months in prison.
The airline said it would ask the government to release some of its staff from quarantine as a result of its investigation into how the pilots contracted Covid-19 concluding.
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