On the evening of August 12, the website of the Civil Aviation Administration of China logged into this news:
Cui Xiaofeng, deputy director of the Civil Aviation Administration, met with Shi Minglun, chairman of Swire Group, in Beijing.
Image source: Civil Aviation Administration website
News has only one sentence in the whole article, but the amount of information revealed is huge -
You should know that Swire Co., Ltd., a Hong Kong subsidiary of Swire Group, is the largest shareholder of Cathay Pacific . The latter is facing an unprecedented management and reputation crisis due to its controversial performance in the recent riots in Hong Kong.
The crisis is approaching. Cathay Pacific, which once "showed the limelight" in many extreme marches and demonstrations, seemed to have just woken up: while taking the initiative to meet with the deputy director of the Civil Aviation Administration, it also made a clear statement for several consecutive days, saying that it did not support employees in participating in illegal gatherings.
However, as the situation evolves step by step, as the volume of condemnation from the domestic and domestic countries is getting higher and higher, whether this airline that has missed the best time to speak out can successfully save itself and escape unsuccessfully is probably a problem to be solved...
two faces: senior management declares "zero tolerance", and employees continue to cause trouble
"Cathospice has zero tolerance for violent activities."
htmlOn August 12, Cathay Pacific CEO Ho Gao made such a clear statement in his employee letter.AFP reported on August 12 that Ho Gao warned employees in the letter that the consequences "may be serious, including firing" if they "participate in or support illegal gatherings." The
report also pointed out that Ho Gao specifically warned employees not to support or attend the new illegal gathering held at Hong Kong Airport on the 12th, and reminded that "the behavior and words of employees outside working hours will have a significant impact on the company."
However, this seemingly sincere response has not received much recognition.
Some netizens believe that the statement seems sincere, but in fact the wording is vague and it is "untrustworthy".
Some netizens also pointed out that compared with the previous series of "bad" performances of Cathay and its employees, such a statement was obviously too late. What is even more ironic is that on the same day that this belated and vague statement was issued, Cathay Pacific employees were once again exposed to openly participate in and support the "Hong Kong independence" activities.
Hong Kong's Ta Kung Pao reported that on the 12th, Cathay Pacific crew members openly clamored online that "will do their best to disobey the orders of the National Civil Aviation Administration" and encouraged other employees to take sick leave collectively and stop flying to mainland routes.
On the same day, another netizen discovered that a deputy captain of Cathay Pacific Airways filmed the cockpit and sent it to the Internet to incite demonstrations. Subsequently, the revelation was confirmed, and Cathay Pacific Airways said in a statement on the 13th that it would suspend the deputy captain.
On the one hand, the senior management shouted the slogan of "zero tolerance", while on the other hand, the employees continued to be unscrupulous. The "two faces" shown by Cathay Pacific obviously angered more and more netizens.
blindly indulges: the statement came late, the action came later
In fact, looking back at Cathay Pacific's actions over the past period of time, it is not difficult to find out what role it played in the recent Hong Kong riots:
On July 28, Cathay Pacific Deputy Captain Liao Songxian was arrested in the riot.
htmlOn August 5, more than 3,000 employees of Cathay Pacific participated in the strike. htmlOn August 6, Cathay Pacific employees openly leaked the information of some Hong Kong police personnel who took the flight to Chengdu to participate in the 18th World Police and Firefighters Games online. htmlOn August 7, some netizens discovered that in the Cathay Pacific airborne entertainment system he was riding, Hong Kong and Taiwan did not mark Hong Kong and Taiwan as Chinese cities, but instead expressed it as "Hong Kong, Hong Kong (Hong Kong, Hong Kong)" and "Taipei, Taiwan (Taipei, Taiwan)". htmlOn August 10, Hong Kong media revealed that a flight attendant under Cathay Pacific Airways participated in an illegal rally, and even clamored that "the tourism industry is deteriorating, so that passengers dare not come to Hong Kong again."…
employees are repeatedly involved, but Cathay Pacific has always been slow to react. This inaction quickly received a heavy warning from China.
htmlOn August 9, the Civil Aviation Administration issued a warning to Cathay Pacific Airways for major aviation safety risks and put forward three requirements.Image source: Civil Aviation Administration website
On the same day, the Civil Aviation Administration also instructed the Civil Aviation Central and South Regional Administration to conduct an administrative appointment with Hong Kong Cathay Pacific. After the official "sword" of
, Cathay Pacific Airways urgently cleared it off on the 9th, saying that the behavior of some employees "does not represent the company's position" and reiterated its consistent support for "one country, two systems". By the evening of the 10th, it was announced that the captain charged with riot was not assigned to flight positions after July 30, and two employees who leaked the privacy of the police force had been fired.
However, after a series of excessive behaviors from employees, Cathay Pacific's "remedy" was criticized for being insincere.
The overwhelming negative comments on the Internet say it all:
Not only that, the New York Times said in a report on August 12 that several Cathay Pacific employees interviewed over the weekend said, "The company has not asked employees whether they are involved in the demonstration and their attitude towards the demonstration."
From this point of view, Cathay Pacific not only made a statement late, but also took action late.
The storm is coming: what is waiting for Cathay Pacific will be...
Cathay Pacific's reaction is slow, but the market's reaction is not slow.
htmlOn August 13, the latest news came, Cathay Pacific's stock price continued to fall unilaterally on the opening day.US Business Insider website reported on August 13 that Cathay Pacific's stock price fell by about 4.9% on the 12th, reaching a new low in the past decade.
In a report on the 13th, the US Bloomberg website further analyzed that Cathay Pacific must cross Chinese airspace every day. If the parties close airspace, it will cause higher fuel costs and lower passenger numbers.
"Although the airline may still survive if it loses its landing rights at a mainland airport, maintaining free passage over China is a matter of life and death." The report said.
Data picture: The picture shows a Cathay Pacific aircraft docked at Hong Kong International Airport (Xinhua News Agency)
. Just today, some netizens checked the data of the flight tracking platform and found that a CX899 flight from New York to Hong Kong on took off at 20:19 Eastern Time. However, when passing over Russia, it bypassed Chinese airspace and flew over Japan to prepare to land in Osaka.
What is more intriguing is that the passenger information on Cathay Pacific’s official website shows that the CX899 flight on August 11 “will not carry passengers on this flight due to operational needs.”
various signals seem to point to the same guess: this flight is a "test aircraft" that Cathay Pacific Airways tests the attitude of the Civil Aviation Administration, and the results of this test, obviously indicates that Cathay Pacific's "money" journey is worrying.
Although on the afternoon of the 13th, Cathay Pacific tried to clarify through the media that the aircraft was a "special arrangement" to alleviate air traffic congestion and "has nothing to do with the recent warning issued by the Civil Aviation Administration to Cathay Pacific", this explanation instantly made many netizens laugh: Do you believe it? Anyway, I don't believe it. While
"does not believe", netizens even speculated on social media about the fate of Cathay Pacific on social media:
explains and clarifies again and again, but again and again, they break their trust in the public, which aroused higher doubts. This is probably the trust crisis that Cathay Pacific is currently in. What is more worth mentioning is that until today, Cathay Pacific has never been able to give a convincing and complete explanation of its own performance in the Hong Kong riots.
All of this, in the words of CCTV host Kang Hui in the "News Broadcast" on August 11, is "No zuo no die! (Don't do it and never die)". What caused this situation was the airline's series of silence, condolence and inaction since the Hong Kong riots.
Next step, how will Cathay Pacific protect itself and how will it save itself?
Just before the publication, Cathay Pacific and Swire Group issued the latest statement, condemning all illegal activities and violence that challenge the "one country, two systems" principle and the authority of the Basic Law. “We must act immediately, oppose violence, restore peace and maintain Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability.”
But after the statement, netizens' doubts remained-
(Source: Reference Message WeChat Official Account)
