FILE PHOTO: A Hong Kong Airlines plane takes off from the Hong Kong International Airport, China September 6, 2019. Picture taken September 6, 2019. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
December 7, 2019
(Reuters) – A Hong Kong air transport regulator said on Saturday that it has decided against suspending Hong Kong Airlines’ license, the city’s second largest airline.
The airline said on Wednesday it had drafted an “initial cash injection plan” that would allow it to make overdue salary payments on Thursday. It did not provide details of the source of the funding.
Air Transport Licensing Authority (ATLA) said in a statement on Saturday that the cash injection plans proved satisfactory, adding that it will continue to closely monitor the firm’s operations.
“ATLA has given careful consideration to factors including public interests and the policy direction of maintaining Hong Kong as an international aviation hub,” said a spokesperson at the authority.
The carrier, part-owned by cash-strapped Chinese conglomerate HNA Group, was told on Monday that it needed to shore up its financial position by Dec. 7 or risk the suspension or loss of its license.
(Reporting by Noah Sin in Hong Kong and Jamie Freed in Sydney; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
