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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 10, 1977
HONG KONG/LONDON PASSENGER FLIGHT DELAYS
TAKEN UP WITH UK AUTHORITY
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MORE THAN A THIRD OF BRITISH AIRWAYS' SCHEDULED PASSENGER FLIGHTS TO AND FROM LONDON ARRIVED OR DEPARTED MORE THAN AN HOUR LATE IN THE FIRST SEVEN MONTHS OF THIS YEAR, THE ACTING FINANCIAL SECRETARY, THE HON. DAVID JEAFFRESON, REVEALED IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TODAY IN REPLY TO A QUESTION BY THE HON. OSWALD CHEUNG.
TO ANOTHER QUESTION BY MR. CHEUNG, MR. JEAFFRESON SAID THE GOVERNMENT WAS NOT SATISFIED WITH THE PUNCTUALITY OF SUCH SCHEDULED FLIGHTS AND HAD REPEATEDLY TAKEN IT UP WITH THE TOP MANAGEMENT OF BRITISH AIRWAYS, BUT NO SUSTAINED IMPROVEMENT HAD RESULTED.
HE SAID THE GOVERNMENT HAD BEEN PURSUING THE MATTER WITH THE CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY, THE BODY IN LONDON RESPONSIBLE FOR MONITORING THE STANDARDS OF SERVICE OF U.K. REGISTERED AIRLINES.
ELABORATING ON THE STATISTICS ON THE DELAYS, THE ACTING FINANCIAL SECRETARY POINTED OUT THAT BRITISH AIRWAYS CARRIED 95 PER CENT OF THE PASSENGERS ON THE SAME-PLANE SERVICE BETWEEN HONG KONG AND LONDON.
ALTHOUGH THE DIRECTOR OF CIVIL AVIATION KEPT A RECORD OF THE ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE TIMES OF ALL FLIGHTS USING KAI TAK AIRPORT, HE SAID, IT WAS KEPT ON THE BASIS OF INDIVIDUAL MOVEMENTS AND NOT ON THE BASIS OF PARTICULAR AIRLINES OR PARTICULAR ROUTES.
HOWEVER SEPARATE RECORDS WERE KEPT OF THE PERFORMANCE OF BRITISH AIRWAYS SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THIS YEAR BECAUSE OF THE NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE UNSATISFACTORY NATURE OF THE SERVICES CONCERNED, HE SAID.
HE EXPLAINED THAT AIRPORT AUTHORITIES AND AIRLINES ADOPTED A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS AS TO WHAT CONSTITUTED A DELAYED FLIGHT AND FOR THE PURPOSES OF HIS OWN STUDY, THE DIRECTOR OF CIVIL AVIATION HAD CHOSEN TO REGARD ONLY FLIGHTS THAT ARRIVED OR DEPARTED MORE THAN AN HOUR LATER THAN THE IR SCHEDULED TIMES AS BEING DELAYED.
ON THE BASIS OF THIS DEFINITION, MR. JEAFFRESON NOTED, THE PERCENTAGE OF BRITISH AIRWAYS' SCHEDULED PASSENGER FLIGHTS DELAYED DURING THE FIRST SEVEN MONTHS THIS YEAR WAS 34.7 PER CENT, THE AVERAGE DELAY HAD BEEN 4 HOURS AND 45 MINUTES, AND A FURTHER TEN FLIGHTS WERE CANCELLED.
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