Page 29 - World Airnews September 2020 Edition

NEWS

CATHAY PACIFIC STRIPS

SEATS FROM 777 AIRCRAFT

fter operating thousands of car-

Ago-only passenger fl ights since late
March, Cathay Pacific has deployed two wide

body aircraft with seats removed to maximise

floor loading of cargo in the passenger cabin.
The Hong Kong-based airline removed
the economy and premium economy seats
from two Boeing 777 passenger planes to

create more space for personal protection
equipment and high-value products, it said
in a cargo-oriented published recently.
Cathay Pacific began flying the modified

aircraft at the end of July to Australia. It

is participating in Australia’s International front and rear seat rows in place to protect and overhead baggage compartments since

Freight Assistance Mechanism, which the the doors and bulkheads from cargo that May, developed special procedures for

government created to help agricultural might shift during turbulence. Two or three loading cargo on cabin floors.

exporters get products to market after airline employees accompany the cargo Warehouse workers put the cargo bags in
airlines closed passenger networks because in the cabin to periodically check on the half-sized containers in the order they will

of the corona virus pandemic. cargo and respond to any potential fire. be positioned in the plane. The containers

The emergency programme, which has All aviation authorities that allow airlines are towed to the aircraft and unloaded one

been extended until year’s end, co-ordinates to operate with cabin cargo require cargo box at a time into hydraulic catering service

and subsidises shipments through a select marshals because cabins aren’t equipped trucks that are lifted to the rear doors of the

group of freight forwarders and airlines. The with fire-suppression systems. Dangerous aircraft. Ground handlers then wheel boxes

seatless aircraft, which were reconfigured by goods are never allowed in the upper deck. into the cabin, position them according to

HAECO in Xiamen, China, can carry 12 extra Redeploying idle aircraft for dedicated the load plan and zip and secure the bags.

tons of cargo, according to Cathay Pacific. cargo service has been lucrative for passen- Cabin loading takes much more time and

The overhaul and maintenance company ger airlines. manpower than loading a pure freighter

also modified the seat track and marked Cathay Pacific is late to the game of re- with containers and pallets. Cathay Pacific

lashing points for securing cargo to the floor. moving seats from passenger planes to cre- estimates the load time at about three

The Hong Kong civil aviation department ate more space for cargo. Air Canada and hours, but said it hopes to get faster as it

requires the airline to place cargo in cus- Lufthansa did so in April. The US federal refines the handling process. Alex Leung,

tomized bags made from a fire-retardant aviation administration last month granted the cargo products manager, said Cathay

material that helps keep the cargo intact. US carriers the authority to strip cabins of could convert more planes to seat-less

Other airlines are using “seat bags” to pro- seats for cargo purposes. But Cathay Pacific freighters if demand persists, especially

tect aircraft interiors from boxes placed in is a combination carrier with a fleet of 20 as the need for pandemic supplies collides

seats, but this is the first known example of Boeing 747 freighters at its disposal and with the peak shipping season this fall.

an airline receiving an operating exemption likely didn’t feel the urgency of pure pas- Cathay is only operating about 10% of its

for floor loading with bagged cargo. Each senger airlines to increase cargo capacity. normal passenger schedule this month and

bag is secured to the floor with a net. Cathay Pacific, which has been carrying has warned it expects to record a (US) $1.3

Safety requirements include keeping the medical supplies and other goods in seats billion loss for the first half of 2020. Q
AFRICA
URGENT BAILOUT NEEDED
financial situation of the Tunisian national Before the Covid-19 pandemic health

company. crisis hit the continent Tunisair was already
e need to establish an Faced with union leaders, and certain of- planning to restructure the airline to the

Wurgent, short-term rescue ficials of the national flagship, the minister tune of nearly 400 million euros. This would
include the possible retrenchment or layoff

plan,” was said at a recent working session Fadel Karim insisted that everyone had a of more than 60% of its workforce.
devoted to the development of a plan for duty to ensure that the carrier maintains The pandemic, coupled with the
its sustainability and regains its balance

the Tunisian national carrier. and its influence. The minister agreed that recent sacking of the CEO Elyes Mnakbi

The meeting, organised by the act- another meeting should be scheduled in has further plunged the carrier into

ing minister of transport and logistics the future to examine the strategic direc- financial and managerial instability. Q

was specifically aimed at assessing the tions of all concerned. https://newsaero.info/airlines

World Airnews | September 2020
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