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Yammer: Flight Operations’ take

It’s time to Yammer!New enterprise social media platform set to roll out to all staff on 26 MayCathay Pacific takes a step in a new direction on 26 May, officially launching a new tool that will enable staff and teams to communicate and collaborate in a completely different way.

As more and more companies switch on to the idea of introducing internal social media capabilities in the workplace, Cathay is joining together with sister airline Dragonair to launch Yammer, an enterprise social network that brings staff and teams together and enables conversations to take place at all levels.

Staff can simply register at the Yammer home page – www.yammer.com – from 26 May using their Cathay or Dragonair email address, or sign on through the app.

The Yammer app can be downloaded from the Apple Store or Google Play Store.

When they log on to the site they will be taken straight to the airlines’ network where they can begin to engage with their colleagues.

Staff can join their own department or port group, see what’s going on in other departments, join groups for specific projects, engage with people who share the same interests, and much, much more.

As with other sites such as Facebook, it is easy to like comments,

add your own response, share posts, add photographs or upload videos and files. Teams can use the Notes function to work collaboratively on a document.

Flight Ops was the pioneer department for Yammer at Cathay, embarking on a trial in early 2014 that has seen a more transparent approach to sharing information

and building dialogue within the department (see below).

As the owner of Yammer, the Corporate Communication Depart- ment has been engaging with communications reps from other departments, who are working to pinpoint so-called Yammer Champions to drive discussions in different areas.

“The launch of Yammer marks the first time we have been able to offer a

completely open two-way channel through which all our staff can communicate,” says Director Corporate Affairs James Tong, executive sponsor of Yammer.

“While Yammer is primarily about improving business knowledge and awareness, it will also help colleagues to come together in other ways – forming groups for specific interests and activities, for example.”

A full rollout plan for Yammer is now being developed – keep an eye on Daily News for all the details.

Join groups for special interests – everything from travel tips to pets

Fire questions at senior managers through regular “YamJams”

While the formal launch of Yammer only happens on 26 May, the plat-form has been open to Cathay Pa-cific users on a trial basis for more than a year.

One of the first departments to get to grips with this new commu-nication tool was Flight Operations, which has been using Yammer since early 2014.

Assistant Manager Flight Com-munications Manager Liz Halloran

was charged with the task of rolling out Yammer in FOP, with General Manager Operations Mark Hoey engaged as the department’s Yam-mer champion.

“Straight away we saw that Yam-mer would help us to have timely, informal, two-way conversations with our flight crew community through either their PCs or the mo-bile application,” says Liz (right).

“Although Yammer is still a work

in progress, there has been a con-sistent and steady sign up from our flight crew community and we are now seeing great conversations taking place on the platform - from operational issues to technical knowledge sharing among flight crew and pilot managers.”

While still some refer to Yammer as a “corporate Facebook”, Liz says the Flight Operations trial has giv-en them a wider perspective on the

enterprise tool.“Yammer’s purpose is to boost

collaboration and productivity and it is designed to support teamwork and information sharing across the company.

“As more people begin to en-gage through Yammer, the plat-form will change the way we work, with more transparency and dis-cussion around the topics that are important to Cathay,” Liz explains.

Give your feedback on a whole range of corporate topics

Like, reply and share messages just as you do in Facebook

Get involved in sharing with your teammates

Post photos of your team events

Upload a video of a presentation

Run a poll among your teammates - or the whole company!

Announce what’s new in your area

Collaborate together on a document using Notes

Sing Jet Kerosene

ICE Brent

Fuel price - Rolling 6 MonthsUSD per Barrel

Dec/14 May/15

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3

While it was the Boeing 747 that first enabled Cathay Pacific to make its mark beyond the Asia Pacific region, it has been the Boeing 777-300ER that turned us into one of the world’s top ultra-long-haul carriers.

Our first 777-300ER arrived just eight years ago, in 2007, and as the fleet expanded we were able to put the aircraft’s capabilities to full use by boosting our network and the number of frequencies offered in the important North American market. To be able to operate a 16-hour flight between Hong Kong and New York with a full load of passengers and up to 20 tonnes of cargo in the belly has been a huge ad-vantage, especially when the fantastic fuel efficiency of the 777 is brought into the equation.

This aircraft enabled us to launch new destinations such as Chicago and Boston, and go up to four-times daily on routes such as New York and Los Angeles. As the 747s were withdrawn from European routes, the 777-300ER took over and helped to improve the operating economics across the board. We have also begun to operate the air-craft on the Sydney route, moving from one to two flights a day from October.

In short, the 777-300ER has been a fantastic success story for Cathay Pacific, and we were very proud to receive our 50th aircraft of this type at the end of the April, marking the occa-sion together with Boeing. It has been a very fruitful partnership indeed.

Our current delivery programme with Boeing is winding down now but our teams are already gearing up for the next major development – the arrival of our Airbus A350s. To bring an entirely new aircraft type into the fleet is an exciting event for everyone in the airline, particularly our pilots and engineers who will be dealing with this state-of-the-art airplane on a daily basis.

Our first A350 out of 48 on order is scheduled for delivery next February and they will arrive in quick succession throughout 2016. The introduction of this new aircraft type will mark another step change in our ongoing fleet and network development.

Ivan Chu

Chief ExecutiveMessage

Sum of its parts

First A350 simulator arriving soon

With less than 10 months to go before entry into service, production of Cathay’s first A350 is about to move into full swing.

At the time of writing, the major sections of the aircraft were being constructed at various sites across Europe and are set to commence shipping to Toulouse this month for final assembly.

Once on the final assembly line at the Airbus factory, the fuselage, wing and tail sections will be joined together, and by July the aircraft should be ready for its first electrical power-up.

System checks will follow together with the fitment of the aircraft’s two Rolls-Royce XWB engines and the cabin interior.

Aircraft painting is planned for November and the first test flight scheduled for December.

“The customer delivery phase will commence in February 2016 when the Cathay aircraft acceptance team will travel to Toulouse to perform a series of formal acceptance procedures, including test-flying the aircraft,” says Engineering’s Bob Taylor, Head of A350 Project.

“During all stages of the production build of the aircraft, Cathay Engineering will be performing a number of interim quality inspections,” he adds.

Meanwhile, different teams within the airline are busy working on entry-into-service project preparations.

In addition to the arrival of the first A350 flight simulator for Cathay (see story below), one of the areas of high activity is the preparation for e-operations.

“The A350 is fully e-enabled which means

Don’t be alarmed when you see a whole section of the Flight Training Centre (FTC) wall being removed this month – it just means that Cathay Pacific is getting ready to welcome its first A350 full flight simulator.

At the time of going to press the simulator was ocean-bound from Southampton, England, with engineers from manufacturer L-3 Link Simulation and Training due to arrive in Hong Kong on 20 May to begin the assembly process.

The new US$17 million sim – the first of its kind in Asia – will be installed on the third floor of Cathay’s unique multi-storey simulator complex.

the aircraft is designed to operate paperless and its onboard systems can communicate with ground systems to share large amounts of operational and system health data as well as software updates,” says Bob.

“The move to e-operations is therefore driving new infrastructure as well as new support teams and the need for regulatory approval.”

Manager Simulator Engineering Neil Cothran explains that getting a new simulator in place is no easy task.

“It’s a big piece of equipment that’s arriving from the UK, taking up at least four containers,” says Neil.

“It will require a custom-built lifting jig to hoist the main sim body into place through the side of the FTC before being assembled bit by bit.”

The actual assembly will take up to three weeks, but that’s only the start of the story.

“We expect to have it in full working order by the end of June, after which L-3 will need to install the latest software from Airbus. It will

be handed over for testing at the beginning of August.”

Testing is expected to take a couple of months and the sim – which features the latest visual system and is the first ever to employ e-enabled systems – should be ready for training by the end of September.

The A350 sim is one of two being delivered to Cathay; the next is scheduled to arrive in the middle of next year.

The latest sim goes into a slot vacated by a Boeing 747-400 sim and maintains the count at 14 full-flight simulators in the FTC.

More on the new arrival in the June CX World.

Final assembly of first Cathay A350 begins in Toulouse this month

COMING TO LIFE: The nose of MSN 034, scheduled to be Cathay’s third A350 for delivery in 2016, under construction. Five future Cathay aircraft are having at least one of their sections built.

4

Anna’s new roleAnna Thompson took on the biggest challenge of her Cathay career last month when she became Director Flight Operations. CX World spoke to Anna to find out more about her career in the airline and the immediate priorities in her new role.

You have been with Swire/Cathay for close to 25 years – what was your initial motivation for join-ing?I first encountered Swire when I was in Japan and we lived right behind Swire House in Tokyo. Ev-ery morning when I was teenager I would open my curtains and see the Swire sign! I didn’t know what Swire was at the time but later I got to know some of the younger Swire chaps and thought, wow, this is an amazing company. Then I went off to university and found out more about Swire and thought, yes, that’s the kind of company I’d like to join.

Did you apply to Swire with the intention of joining Cathay?That wasn’t exactly an option! I loved aviation and always hoped to join Cathay but in the Swire Management Programme we do not choose where in the group we work!

How did your career progress?I started off in ISD in my first year then moved to Singapore as Assis-tant to Country Manager and then back to Hong Kong Office. I’ve ac-tually spent quite a lot of time in countries – I was in the Cebu from 1995 to1996, Italy from 1997 to 2000, Germany from 2000 to 2003 and then back to Singapore as GM Southeast Asia from 2007 to 2011. I have worked in ISD twice and Air-ports twice, so have a strong opera-tional background.

Which were your favourite postings?Working as Country Manager Italy & Switzerland for three years was a personal highlight but I love the operational side, so I relished be-ing General Manager Airports. You understand every aspect of an air-line with the mix of the people, the outport element and also setting things up to provide the best pos-sible service to our customers both at normal times and during disrup-tions.

How did the Cathay management

system help you as your career pro-gressed?You enjoy an amaz-ing variety of roles and also benefit from the stability and knowing what’s expected of you. You know the people and where to go to get things done, and you learn very quickly.

After GM Southeast Asia you became COO of Air Hong Kong – how was your first taste of flight operations?Air Hong Kong was another awe-some job! It was a new experience for me running a small airline and it gave me a lot of external exposure working closely with DHL. I had to deal with a lot of areas I didn’t handle in Cathay because you have a bottom line – and of course I was also working directly with aircrew for the first time.

And then you to moved to Flight Operations as General Manager Aircrew?The GMA job is described by some as the most difficult GM job in Ca-thay. I was there for 18 months and I didn’t get to change as much as I would have liked with industrial and morale issues to contend with as well as challenges around meet-ing the growth and commercial re-quirements of the airline.

How did you feel to be then asked to become DFO?Of course I was absolutely delight-ed – and also very proud – to be asked to lead such an important team and be given the chance to shape the future of Flight Ops.

Is there a challenge to have a non-pilot in this role?Absolutely! The important thing is to get the right technical and oper-ational advice and listen carefully to the crew. We make decisions as a senior management team and

hence we can ensure we have a comprehensive approach.

What are the immediate challeng-es you face? The top priority will obviously be to create positive outcomes with the union. We are negotiating with them on a number of issues from pay to roster practices so we would really like to get some deals done. There are also issues around the alignment and engagement survey for all of FOP and the level of en-gagement and low morale among cockpit crew.

Looking forward my priority is to look at areas such as how we do our rostering and getting a new crew management sys-tem in place. We need to make things more transparent and give our crew the ability to better control their lifestyle and rosters. We need to move into the 21st century!

FOP is a complex depart-ment and in addition to the pilots we have a very profes-sional ground team in place and it’s about making sure we are all moving in forward with clear goals and objectives.

How do you expect the new role to impact on your work-life bal-ance?It is a bit of a challenge at the mo-ment because I have a daughter, Georgia, who is three-and-a-half. Sometimes my helper will bring her to Cathay City at lunchtime if I have evening commitments, and when I get home I am pretty ruth-less about focusing on her while she’s up and about.

I used to do triathlon and lots of running but that’s all gone by the wayside now, unfortunately. At least living in South Lantau I can get out for hikes with my two black Labradors!

The top priority will obviously be to create

positive outcomes with the union

Hong Kong International Airport aspires to become “the world’s greenest airport”. To this end, Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) has been forging collaborations with the airport community on various initiatives.

Cathay has been supporting these initiatives, and here are a few recent examples:

Carbon reduction pledge – HKIA commits to reduce its carbon emissions by 25% per work load unit from 2008 levels by 2015. This complements Cathay’s own sustainable development target to reduce emissions.

Low emission vehicles – AAHK requires all airside saloon cars to be electric vehicles by 2017. Cathay has made this one of the key considerations of its vehicle replacement strategy.

Reduced engine taxiing – The Flight Operations team has been working with AAHK to reduce the number of engines used when taxiing to or from the runway for takeoffs and landings, to reduce ground level emissions and conserve fuel.

Fixed ground power unit (FGPU) and pre-conditioned air (PCA) systems – HKIA has been upgrading the frontal stands with new systems to support the restriction on auxiliary power unit usage on aircraft stands. This reduces the use of engine fuel while the aircraft is being serviced on the ground.

Food waste recycling –AAHK’s contractor collects food waste from the airport community daily and recycles it into dry animal feed. Between September 2011 and December 2014, more than 450 tonnes of food waste were collected at Cathay City.

Surplus food donation programme – Cathay has been supporting this programme since August 2013 by donating leftover and surplus food from the Cathay City food court to Food Angel. The food is turned into nutritious meal-boxes for Hong Kong’s underprivileged. As of end-2014, Cathay had donated a total of 4,400kg of food.

World’s greenestairport

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6

“Being a cabin crew with Cathay Pacific has its perks. A fun and enjoyable atmosphere, and the job offers a lot of learning points. On every single flight we learn something new,” says London-based Flight Attendant Richard Turner.

In February this year, he encountered one of his most memorable flights.

Rich was on a CX252 flight from London to Hong Kong.

The flight was full and very busy, and what he thought was going to be an uneventful flight turned out otherwise.

“The first meal service had just finished and I remember having some good chats with a few passengers,” says Rich.

On that flight he was assigned to do inflight sales and it was his duty to assist passengers who wanted to shop onboard.

“While I was doing my rounds, I noticed one passenger looking very ill. I approached him and noticed that he looked like he was going to collapse,” Rich recalls.

“I donned my first aid hat and immediately brought the passenger to the nearest available empty seats where I could easily perform first aid,” he says. “After a few minutes, the passenger was already feeling better.”

The pair then introduced themselves to each other. “It was then that I found out he was a doctor himself, and he was very appreciative of what I had done,” Rich smiles.

From that experience I have learned that the kind of training flight attendants get is very important, and could indeed save lives,” he says.

“One of the keys to a safe and happy flight is having crew who not only know how to give superb meal service but are also skilled to handle any difficult situations inflight.”

Letters to the Editor

and staff. Whilst I would agree hedging

and fuel costs don’t directly reflect the contribution from employees, I would disagree that lower net fuel costs leads to smaller profit and hence bad news for profit share. As outlined by the Chairman in the annual report, we continue to ben-efit from the lower net fuel prices and the outlook is positive. All else being equal, this can only be good news regarding profit share.

SSFTH in the jump seat I was a staff traveller on CX764 on 26 March. The flight was so full that I had to take a jump seat to Hong Kong.

I would like to thank the cabin crew on this flight, especially Flight Purser Theresa and other crew members whose names I regrettably couldn’t recall.

They fully demonstrated SSFTH by constantly smiling and offering a lot of help throughout my journey, despite the fact that I was just an ID passenger.

I know that cabin crew may be busy with revenue passengers sometimes but the team still showed their patience to me – and I’m just taking the jump seat! Well done!

FOP staff

So is there any reason not to go back to naming our aircraft? It doesn’t have to be as flamboyant as Virgin, but anything would be better than calling our “girls” LBB and KQC!

A suggestion would be to keep each separate fleet with the same common thread and something relevant to Hong Kong and its history. Some examples could be the villages of Hong Kong; birds of Hong Kong; famous people from the history of Hong Kong; moun-tain peaks; streets (Lan Kwai Fong may be a favourite) et cetera.

It’s a very small thing to ask, and would be of virtually no cost, but the personalisation of our beauti-ful aircraft would be a small step towards bringing back some of the glamour and magic of air trav-el from the days when Betsy was roaring through the Asian skies.

Cockpit crew

The end of profit share I read the article in CX World in which our Finance Director explained the hedging situation at Cathay and stated that we are likely to make hedging losses in future years if the fuel price stays around the current level.

I understand that low fuel prices are good for our business in the long run, but they seem like very bad news regarding staff receiving profit share.

Even if our business is doing very well – as seems to be the case at the moment – there seems little chance of our core airlines making any profit if hedging is included as part of the equation.

Our flights are busier than ever and colleagues across the company are working hard to make the airline a success; can’t we have a profit share formula that better reflects the contribution staff are making to the company?

Hong Kong staff

Martin Murray, Finance Director, replies: As mentioned in the article, we hedge to manage volatility and to protect against the risk of fuel prices rising.

This provides confidence in sustainable earnings which leads to continued investment, which is good for business, the investors

What’s in a name?I was reading an article about Virgin Atlantic’s first 787 arrival and what struck me was the name chosen: Birthday Girl.

I wonder why Cathay, which has such a passion for Betsy and Niki (below), has never bothered to name aircraft since? I’m sure that if Betsy were never named as such, and was referred to as VR-HDB, the mystique and wonder of our first aircraft would never have evolved.

We have a few aircraft in the fleet which stand out. The first 747-8 with its distinctive paint scheme; B-LBB due to the title of 1,000th A330; the “green” 777 and so on.

It engenders a little more excite-ment and interest in an aircraft when it is a little different, a little more personalised.

The winner of the CX World Star Letter scores a bottle of Quincho Reserve Syrah Maule Valley 2010.

This delicious Chilean wine displays attractive aromas of spices and dark berries, followed by a velvety palate of ripe black fruits, notes of mocha and underpinned with smooth tannins. 

It is a superb accompaniment to roasted red meat dishes and robust pasta dishes.

Quincho Reserve Syrah Maule Valley 2010 is served in Cathay Pacific’s Business Class cabins.

ISD will be offering a bottle of wine from CX’s Business Class selection every month for the Star Letter winner, so watch this space!

Star Letter prizeTime for hand dryers?I wonder how many rolls of paper towel are con-sumed every day in the toilets of Cathay City. Why don’t we install Air Blades like the ones in Dako-tas?

ENG staff

Simon Sing, Assistant Manager Facility Services, replies: A number of studies have been undertaken among Cathay City staff to compare the use of hand dryers and paper towels from a sanitary and an environmental perspective. 

Most users of hand dryers do not completely dry their hands. Paper towels are generally regarded as more hygienic. The energy use per toilet visit is about the same for both options.

A high-speed warm hand dryer has been installed in the male toilets on the 6th floor of North Tower. 

In Dragonair House, there are warm air hand dryers in each toilet in addition to paper towels.

However, most staff prefer to use the paper towels.

Warm hand dryers were originally installed in the toilets at Cathay City. These were replaced by linen towels in 2000. During the SARS outbreak in 2003, paper towels were considered the best option for hygienic reasons. All things considered, we do not recommend the replacement of the paper towel dispensers we have currently.

7

Letters to the Editor

In order to facilitate cabin crew’s work and encourage feedback, Dragonair’s ISD team has been striving to broaden communica-tion channels and build a friendly working environment.

Manager Cabin Crew Communications & Relations Ivy Choy is keen to emphasise how important it is for the management to consult cabin crew on various issues, listen to their views and understand their needs.

“Transparency is necessary in our communication with cabin crew. This is why ISD management attends training sessions to take questions and share information on issues frequently raised by our crew,” says Ivy.

“We are also exploring different ways of keeping our crew abreast of the latest products, services and events. One way is to produce more lively videos to make corporate updates more engaging and interesting.”

A number of initiatives that offer support are also being rolled out.

Since late April, a new support group has been set up, provid-ing more assistance to inductees who are starting their careers.

“We have invited senior crew from the Cabin Crew helpdesk team to reach out to the new inductees more often,” says Ivy. “This encourages the sharing of experiences and helps to bridge the gap between cabin crew of different ranks.”

Working on the frontline for an airline means that festivals and holidays are often the busiest work periods.

The management team is grateful that the cabin crew com-munity is committed to working over public holidays. They’re also keen to ensure that cabin crew don’t miss out on festivities.

“Our sincere thanks must go to staff who cannot spend spe-cial occasions with their loved ones due to work,” says Ivy.

“We like to express our gratitude by giving them gifts during important festivals such as Chinese New Year, Christmas and Valentine’s Day.”

Building a great crew culture

Dennis Owen, Manager Brand, replies: Thank you for your suggestion around the naming of our aircraft. It’s definitely an interesting idea, and one that has been considered in the past. It’s a polarizing issue and one that continues to be debated.

Location, location, locationI recently noticed that our CX World stand has a new location on The Street in Cathay City while I was sit-ting at an outside table in the can-teen having my dinner.

I think more staff will notice the CX World stand at the old location – which is close to the canteen en-trance – rather than the new loca-tion, which is close to the Vogue Laundry outlet and the Chinese Garden.

May I suggest that you place some copies of CX World on a maga-zine rack at the entrance of the can-teen as well? Thank you.

Josephine Rafudi, ISD

Mark Tindall, Corporate Communication Manager –Communication Services, replies: Thanks for your feedback. The current location for the stand was decided after discussion with the building management team, which wanted to clear up some of the clutter that had accumulated on The Street over the years.

When we are finally able to achieve our long-awaited revamp of CX World we will take another look at the best way to distribute the magazine to staff and visitors. In the meantime, I hope you will continue to be a loyal reader and contributor.

Name cardsAre there any plans to introduce a new business card design to reflect the new branding? And when can we expect this to roll out?

It’s been six months since the new brand. Surely it’s time to get rid of the old stock and introduce new cards?

ENV staff

Dennis Owen, Manager Brand, replies: We have good news on this front.  The new design is ready and orders can be made through eBuy approximately mid May with deliveries to commence in June.  

However, it’s important to note that all staff must use their current business card supply until it is exhausted before ordering new ones.

With its extensive Asian network, Dragonair has been playing a key role in supporting the Cathay Pacific Group’s overall cargo growth.

“Dragonair Cargo provides good feeders to support traffic for Asia and the South Asian subcontinent,” says John Cheng, Manager Cargo Sales & Marketing. “It is particularly important to boost the presence of the Group in secondary cities in China.”

To capitalise on the proliferation of e-commerce in the Mainland, the China team works closely with China Post to carry international e-commerce shipments via Hong Kong.

“Our China mail volumes increased more than 200% in 2014, with Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Wenzhou, Fuzhou and Changsha leading the growth,” says John.

John adds that the growing middle class in the Mainland has also led to surging imports of quality food products to the country, ranging from baby formula to live seafood.

A more stable political environment in Bangladesh has also contributed to the growth of Dragonair Cargo’s business, with increasing exports of garments and seafood shipments to Asia and rthe est of the world.

John anticipates that the cargo business of Dragonair will maintain a growth trend.

“Mail traffic from the Mainland offers high potential for Dragonair in the coming year, driven by the continued growth of e-commerce in China,” he says.

Cargo business grows

8

50 reasons to be proudAirline celebrates arrival of 50th aircraft dubbed the “backbone of the long-haul fleet”

Cathay celebrated a significant fleet milestone last month when it took delivery of its 50th Boeing 777-300ER – just eight years after the first aircraft arrived.

B-KQX left Seattle on 30 April, and two days later there was a clear demonstration of how the aircraft type has helped develop Cathay’s ultra-long-haul capabilities when a -300ER operated the first flight for the new Boston service.

The latest delivery came out of Boeing’s Everett plant with a decal attached to acknowledge the significance of this aircraft.

The North America team used the occasion to invite a group of around

50 corporate travel agents, top customers and media to enjoy the delivery activities. 

After a Boeing factory tour, the group enjoyed lunch and the delivery ceremony at the Boeing Delivery Centre, where senior Boeing officials handed KQX over to Senior Vice President, Americas Tom Owen.   

Following a ribbon-cutting and aircraft tour, Capt Peter Clemmow and his crew welcomed the group onboard to fly them away for a familiarisation trip to Hong Kong.

Boeing approached the 50th delivery with real enthusiasm, highlighting the strength of the

relationship between manufacturer and airline.

“We truly value the confidence Cathay Pacific has demonstrated in the 777 programme as well as Boeing’s products and services across the board,” says Ihssane Mounir, Boeing’s Senior Vice President of Sales for Northeast Asia.

“We are honoured that the 777-300ER continues to play a prominent role in the success of Cathay’s business expansion and we look forward to expanding our partnership with the new 777X in the years to come.”

Engineering Director Christopher Gibbs has been a 777-300ER

enthusiast from day one and says the aircraft has lived up to – or even exceeded – expectations.

“The 777-300ER has been highly reliable from first entry-into-service with us in 2007.  As a result of this reliability we are able to achieve very high utilisation of more than 16 hours a day, which helps to improve the commercial performance of the airline,” says Chris.

“Also, there is extensive commonality with our 17 regional 777-200s and -300s which means we can share parts and knowledge across the two fleets.”

As for network development, General Manager Airline Planning

Navin Chellaram says the -300ER has come into its own on the ultra-long-hauls.

“It has proved to be the ideal aircraft for North American missions with its fuel efficiency and payload-range capability, and it has underpinned our North American expansion over the past eight years, with the frequency growing from 73 to 105 per week.”

As well being deployed on new routes such as Zurich, Boston and, from September, Düsseldorf, Navin says the -300ER will be used on a second Sydney flight from October and for upgauging one of the Auckland flights in the winter peak.

9

VIP TOUR: Corporate travel agents, top customers and media treated to a Boeing factory tour.

READY FOR TAKEOFF: B-KQX, Cathay’s 50th 777-300ER, left Boeing’s Everett plant on 30 April.

CLOSE TIES: Boeing’s Ihssane Mounir (left) with Cathay Senior Vice President, Americas Tom Owen.

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Win a five-star holiday in Boston!

Changing times

Thanks to Mandarin Oriental Boston, our generous sponsor, this issue we’re giving away a two-day holiday at the five-star property, together with a pair of Priority 16 upgradable round-trip Economy Class tickets.

The property enjoys a covetable location on the city’s famous Boylston Street and is within walking distance of the city’s historic sites and landmarks.

Visit the CX World Yammer group from 26 May for details on how to enter!

Cathay Holidays now a leaner, more digital organisationIt’s been a year of unprecedented change at Cathay Pacific Holidays.

In January this year, the subsidiary company relocated its office from Quarry Bay to the fifth floor of Central Tower in Cathay City.

The changes didn’t stop there. Cathay Holidays has also revamped the way it does business, as well as its organisational structure.

It’s now a leaner, more digital organisation, says Managing Director Roberto Abbondio.

“In the past, Cathay Holidays sold traditional static packages. We were making content decisions for our customers,” says Roberto.

“But times have changed. We now live in an era of online travel booking – people want to go online and create their own content.

“Besides, business at Cathay Holidays was on the decline. The proposition just wasn’t interesting to the travelling public anymore.”

Enter the Travel Retail Platform (TRP), a new booking engine that allows customers to build their very own holiday experiences directly through cathaypacific.com.

TRP’s Hong Kong launch on 24 April followed successful rollouts in Singapore and Australia.

The new retail offering presents customers with options that bundle the best available CX airfares and hotels in real time.

This gives customers greater flexibility to build their itineraries and configure all holiday elements using the same platform.

TRP also allows customers to combine air and non-air ancillary items into a cost-saving bundle.

“Ultimately, the ambition is to create an Amazon-like experience. We aim to offer tickets and events that customers can add to their shopping cart within this year,” says Roberto.

Teams around the network are now working to launch the product to as many markets as possible, with Thailand, New Zealand, the US and Canada up next.

All of this was accompanied by an organisational reshuffling.

The current 50 Cathay Holidays staff are now sitting with the Digital Retail team since their move

to Cathay City. “Cathy (Hornby; Manager Digital Retail) and I thought to mix our staff together so they can learn from each other,” Roberto says. “It’s great for the team – we feel like we’re more integrated into the Cathay family.”

Dynamic new hires ensured that the team is digitally up-skilled. More operational aspects of the business were outsourced to make way for a more efficient team and product.

The road ahead is not easy, Roberto admits: “To some extent we’re playing catch-up. TRP isn’t even about the future; it’s about the present. People out there already have this sort of customer behaviour and competition is fierce.”

But he is confident in Cathay Holidays’ long-term compet-itiveness.

“Our teams are building an inventory that hopefully no one else has. Our vision is to anticipate the future and soon provide customers with a best-value guarantee, meaning people will not be able to buy a packaged Cathay flight at a better deal on the market.”

Boston launches with fanfareBoston, Cathay Pacific’s sixth gateway in the US, was launched in style and kicking off a series of celebration activities was a first flight ceremony held at Boston Logan Airport in the early morning of 3 May.

Passengers on the first Boston to Hong Kong flight enjoyed a traditional lion dance performance before boarding and also received special souvenirs to mark the occasion.

On 5 May, Cathay Pacific Chairman John Slosar and Chief Operating Officer Rupert Hogg hosted an elegant gala dinner at the Massachusetts State House with the Honourable CY Leung, HKSAR Chief Executive, gracing the event as guest-of-honour.

The gala dinner featuring Cathay Pacific’s signature Walking on Air show   was attended by some 100 guests, including a government delegation from the Innovation and Technology Commission and 20 university students from Hong Kong, who were in Boston on an official visit to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University.

Also at the event was a Hong Kong VIP delegation made up of guests from prominent Hong Kong trade bodies.

Rounding up the Boston festivities was a launch party held at Empire Restaurant and Lounge on 7 May.

With a toast led by Director Corporate Affairs James Tong and Senior Vice President, Americas Tom Owen, the airline thanked the local travel trade, loyal Marco Polo Club members and media for their support for the new service. Some 300 guests enjoyed a great evening of food from an East-meets-West menu, had fun posing as crew in a photo booth and brought home a personalised tea set with calligraphy done by experts.

Trade eventInaugural flight

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A helping hand in NepalThe city of Kathmandu was gradually returning to normalcy after a devastating earthquake tore through Nepal on 25 April.

However, as CX World went to print, reports were coming through of a second huge earthquake rocking the country.

The consequences of these natural disasters will be felt in the years to come.

Following the first earthquake, Dragonair’s flight on 25 April was delayed, but the airline was able to operate two flights between Hong Kong and Kathmandu the following day.

By 27 April, the airline was operating flights as scheduled.

This achievement boils down to the incredible resilience of the local team in Kathmandu, says Regional General Manager South Asia, Middle East & Africa Charlie Stewart-Cox.

It was also made possible by support from Indian colleagues, who formed and flew in a relief team comprising passenger, cargo, ramp and engineer staff at short notice to assist the Kathmandu operation.

This proved crucial, as only a handful of GHA staff showed up at work the morning after the quake.

As the week wore on, additional waves of support teams from India arrived on two-day rotations.

“I’d like to express my huge admiration and commendation for all the members of the relief teams, and especially to Country Manager Nepal Parthenia Lai and the people of Kathmandu for their incredible achievements is the face of great adversity and strain,” Charlie says. “We salute them all.”

Now that plans to replace legacy systems with the new Cargo Ser-vices System (CSS) are underway, it presents a great opportunity to redesign business processes within the Cargo department.

CSS is also the first major project to incorporate the Lean methodol-ogy with collaborative input on a system-wide level.

The CSS project team constantly kept Lean concepts in mind when they deigned the new system’s busi-ness processes earlier this year.

To ensure that everyone’s Lean goals were aligned, 30 users of the cargo system from Hong Kong and outports were invited to take part in a two-day Lean workshop.

To maximise the workshop’s ef-fectiveness, participants had to complete a Lean course online be-forehand.

The CSS-specific Lean workshop

covers six targeted areas, specifical-ly managing air waybill (AWB) stock, protecting shipments, transferral of cargo to truckers, processing of trucker data, mail handling and maintaining AWB contracts.

With the aid of the Lean core team, participants looked at how the workflows of these areas can be further streamlined.

“We soon realised a lot of pro-cesses can be simplified with auto-mation,” says Sammi Lau, Assistant Engagement Manager CSS. “By adopting Lean thinking, we ensure that we won’t overlook any wast-ages along the way.”

The Lean training has already been reaping results.

For instance, when CSS launches the new cargo booking handling system, work processes will be re-duced from more than 10 steps to three.

Cathay Pacific and Dragonair appeal aids relief effort after devastating earthquake

Acceptance of air waybills (AWBs) will be simplified from nine to five steps.

Management of AWB stock will be fully automated. And instead of making phone calls, request-ing AWBs from agents is just a click away.

Results from other simplifications will be evident when CSS is imple-mented.

There are other updates from the CSS team as well. More than 160 cargo staff from outports will be in-vited to attend a “Train the Trainer” course in August.

“Lean is an ongoing process, so we’re keen to make sure everyone is equipped with the right skills,” says Sammi. “Not only will the training session add value to CSS, it will also lead to long-term enhancements to cargo processes, even after the launch of CSS.”

Lean methods adopted in CSS

Cathay Pacific Services Limited (CPSL) has launched a dedicated cross-border trucking service to ensure efficient and seamless road feeder services connecting Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta.

“Our aim is to enhance the position of Hong Kong as a major cargo transit gateway in the world,” says Kelvin Ko, Chief Executive Officer of CPSL.

The intermodal operations simultaneously fulfil Hong Kong customs’ Intermodal Transshipment Facilitation Scheme (ITFS) and Chinese customs’ China Quick Pass Mode (QP) scheme, making it possible for non-stop transportation across the Hong Kong-Shenzhen border.

The fleet of trucks are all equipped with e-GPSeal, a GPS enabled e-lock that allows the transshipment cargoes to be custom-bonded with full visibility, from departure to cargo loading and arrival.

CPSL will operate daily scheduled services between Hong Kong and Dongguan, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Huangpu, Shenzhen and Xiamen.

Services to and from other parts of China can be arranged on request.The trucks are capable of handling all major kinds of cargo including odd-

sized, overweight, and temperature-sensitive goods.

DONATION DRIVE: Cathay Pacific and Dragonair have appealed to staff and passengers to donate to UNICEF Hong Kong’s relief effort in Nepal. In the meantime, the airlines have also been providing assistance to non-profit organisations working in Nepal.

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“Special thanks must also go to Thomas Bellamy, Country Manager Bahrain & Saudi Arabia, who having been posted here before was able to provide great support,” says Parthenia.

Support for Nepal has been pouring in from all directions.

In the immediate aftermath of the quake, staff in Hong Kong were quick to put together a 1,300kg shipment of emergency supplies – including bottled water, raincoats, dry food, torches and batteries – to send to the local team.

A passenger appeal was launched, whereby all donations collected on Cathay and Dragonair flights between 1 to 15 May will go towards the relief work of UNICEF Hong Kong in Nepal. Passenger donations in the first week totalled approximately HK$624,000.

The Cathay Pacific Group also launched a 14-day staff fundraising campaign for UNICEF with a pledge to match all staff donations dollar by dollar.

Staff of the two airlines raised some HK$688,000 in the first week.

Cathay Pacific and Dragonair also provided immediate assistance to non-profit organisations and charities that were sending relief supplies and rescue teams to affected areas.

Among them were a rescue team from Canada, which comprised 25 volunteers including firefighters and doctors, and three rescue dogs.

Colleagues from HKIA and HAS went to great lengths to ensure that the entire rescue team could pass through immigration to get to their destination.

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Manila’s great expectations

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networkingin TaiwanThe Taiwan team held media gatherings in Taipei and Kaohsiung as well as a Marco Polo Club gathering in Kaohsiung in March.

GM Taiwan and Korea Patrick Yeung expressed his gratitude to frequent fliers and the media for their support and dedication over the past year.

He also introduced developments at the two airlines in 2015 and gave an overview of the Life Well Travelled marketing campaign.

Malay site launchedThe Malaysia team is excited about the launch of the Cathay Pacific website in Malay recently.

The local team celebrated the launch with a simple cake-cutting ceremony at the Kuala Lumpur office, joined by department heads from KUL, Penang and Kota Kinabalu.

Visit the newly launched website at www.cathaypacific.com/cx/ms_MY.html

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Boston’s social media blitzThe US team ran a social media campaign in April to drum up the hype for its new Boston route.

The team organised a photo contest encouraging Bostonians to share their iconic Boston experiences for a chance to win a pair of tickets to Hong Kong. Selected photos will also be printed as postcards and given to passengers on flights on the new route.

Photos were submitted to Instagram or Twitter via the #CXBOStoHKG hashtag and featured on the US Facebook gallery.

The campaign racked up 3,318 submissions on Instagram. To drive the interest to a fever pitch, the team hosted an InstaMeet where

60 local photographers and influencers got together for a 3.6 mile photo walk that covered many of Boston’s most recognised areas and landmarks.

The team also partnered with bloggers and influencers from Boston and Hong Kong to complete the campaign full circle.

Happy 45th, Perth!On 2 April, the Perth team celebrated 45 years of operations into Perth.

Pictured cutting the 45th anniversary cake is Senior Licensed Aircraft Engineer Max Williams, who handled the first Cathay Pacific Convair 880 in 1970 as a staff of another engineering company back then.

“In 1970 I was in the fifth year of my apprenticeship with Ansett Airlines and working in line maintenance here in Perth. The Cathay Convair 880 started flying to Perth and Ansett had the contract to provide full ground handling for its turnaround,” Max says.

“If I recall correctly, it arrived on Saturday evening and departed on Sunday morning.

It wasn’t a direct service – the aircraft flew Perth-Jakarta-Kuala Lumpur-Hong Kong-Tokyo in just over 10 hours.

“I worked on the aircraft a number of times. Aviation has certainly come a long way since then!” he smiles.

Cathay Pacific’s new lounge at Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) opened to the public on 9 May.

The project started five months ago, shortly after the team transferred their operations from the old Terminal 1 to the newer Terminal 3 late last year.

Located near Gate 114 of Terminal 3, the new lounge spans 650 square metres and can accommodate 135 customers. It’s also almost twice as big as the lounge in the old terminal.

Designed by London-based design studio Studioilse, the intent is to reflect Cathay’s new brand ethos and to create an environment that makes passengers feel good by engaging the senses and focusing on wellbeing.

“Manila has been one of Cathay Pacific’s most important destinations throughout its history. The substantial investment in ground products demonstrates our commitment to this market,” says Alan Lui, Country Manager Philippines.

“Our next-generation lounge will further differentiate our passenger experience from competitors.”

The team is cheered by other positive developments too.Manila just welcomed the addition of a seventh daily

flight to the summer schedule. And last month, a media event was held at Makati Peninsula Hotel to launch the Life Well Travelled campaign in front of local media.

In terms of business, the Manila route has been enjoying robust passenger and cargo traffic, helped by the optimistic economic outlook locally.

“We’ve met our revenue targets in the first quarter,” says Alan. “Back-end traffic has been especially pleasing with high load factors.

“Consumer spending in the Philippines is growing strongly at more than 5%, which points to a healthy and confident business environment.”

Cathay has a long history of serving the Manila route and enjoys an excellent reputation as the largest international carrier in the Philippines.

It has also been reaping the benefits of the move to Terminal 3. “Not only did our operations benefit from the new facilities, but the closer and more convenient road connections from Terminal 3 to downtown Makati – the main business district – have made onward passenger journeys far easier,” Alan says.

A big obstacle for growth is NAIA’s impending saturation.“It won’t be easy for us to get additional take-off and

landing slots. In the mid-term, therefore, we will need to focus on maximising revenue from the capacity we already have,” says Alan.

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Auckland’s Airport Supervisor Maria Chow is one of the airline’s longest-serving staff.

“I will complete 44 years of service in August and am eagerly looking forward to my 45th year with Cathay,” she smiles.

Maria joined the airline as cabin crew in 1971. “Prior to that, I worked at a five-star hotel in Hong Kong, giving me many chances to meet our cabin and flight crew,” she recalls. “Their charming appearance and professionalism made me want to become one of them!”

Maria still cherishes fond memories of her flying career. “I still remember how, on a flight from Taipei to Seoul in

the early 1970s, more than half of the First Class passengers that I served tried to invite me to dinner in Seoul,” she laughed. “They all seemed disappointed when they found out that we had to continue our flight to Tokyo!”

After 25 years of service, Maria retired from flying in 1996 to start her new role at the airport in Auckland.

“Shortly before my retirement, I met David Figgins, the former Country Manager here, on flight duty,” she says. “Knowing that I planned to settle down in New Zealand, he kindly extended this offer to me.”

Maria has worn seven generations of the Cathay uniform, but the first she ever wore remains her favourite.

“The short-sleeved red miniskirt dress with mushroom hat is a combination of youth, elegance and modernity with an Oriental twist, ” she grins.

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Maria taking time out at the scenic Takapuna Beach in Auckland.

San Francisco-based Airport Services Manager Manuela Elia loves to blend her passion for travel with her interest in long-distance running.

“I enjoy exploring the world and experiencing local cultures by scaling mountains on a bicycle and trekking along on my own two feet,” says Manuela.

“What I love about long-distance running is the camaraderie and challenges that are present at every event and level. The endurance sports community is very welcoming and the different sports events taking place over the course of the year keep me motivated to always try something new.”

Manuela describes endurance sports as “challenging” to both her mental and physical fitness.

“A marathon is a 26.2-mile straight running event, while a half Ironman race spans a total of 70.3 miles, covering 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles on the bike, and the last 13.1 miles of running,” she says.

“The training for runners is physically and mentally demanding. We need to build our strength event by event – completing shorter races early in the season and then

progressing ourselves to the next level every few months.”

Manuela is looking forward to her next triathlon adventure.  

“Now that I am in California, I would like to participate in some local sports events and get connected to the endurance sports community here,” she says.

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Korea’s brand promotionTo promote the new brand campaign, the Korean Marketing team pulled out all the stops for a travel talk hosted at Seoul’s trendy Daelim Museum in April.

In attendance were 100 fans who were lucky winners of a Facebook competition, as well as representatives from partners such as the Hong Kong Tourism Board, Tourism Australia and the Taiwan Tourism Board.

Country Manager Mark Ng kicked off the event by introducing the Life Well Travelled concept, followed by sharing sessions by British mountaineer James Hooper, tastemaker Youngwook Oh, writer Youngok Baek and Sally Chung, a Korean staff member.

The event was a huge success. The branded photo wall was a hit among guests and 14 media outlets joined.

new year in colomboThe Colombo team celebrated the Sinhala and Tamil New Year with 10 of their top travel agents. The Sinhala and Tamil New Year is one of the biggest festivals in the Sri Lankan calendar, widely celebrated across the country by the Sinhalese and the Hindus.

A basket of traditional sweetmeats were given to all travel agents. The Sales & Marketing team also took measures to announce special New Year fare promotions.

Honouring top journalistsTravel writer Venetia Sherson was awarded the top honour at the Cathay Pacific Travel Media Awards in New Zealand in April for a story about her three-day trek through the Apennine Mountains in Italy.

Cathay has been the major sponsor of the awards since they were established in 1991. Judging this year on behalf of Cathay Pacific was National Geographic Traveller UK Associate Editor Sarah Barrell.

Barrell said Venetia was blessed with a rare talent and a distinctive style. Read the story at http://goo.gl/casfTh.

The winner of the Cathay Pacific Travel Photographer of the Year was Paul Daly, who wowed the judging panel with his portfolio of photos taken in Cappadocia and Istanbul (bottom right).

At the awards dinner at the Auckland Heritage Hotel’s Grand Tearoom, Country Manager Brian Tsoi said good travel journalism encourages people to live a life well travelled.

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Dispatches from IndiaStaff in India were glued to their screens when India played against Australia in the World Cup Cricket semi-finals on 26 March. To support India, staff across the country turned up to work in blue and there was live streaming in offices.

Separately, staff celebrated the colourful festival of Holi in a big way. The Customer Sales team in Mumbai and the Cargo and Airport teams in Delhi dressed in earthy colours and ordered thandai, a special drink associated with Holi.

new office venue blessedThe Denpasar team hosted a traditional Balinese cere-mony on 21 April in advance of their office relocation.

After 15 years at the same office location at the airport, the team is finally moving to a new home at Kuta Paradiso, a five-star hotel, with rental savings.

A priest conducted the ceremony by chanting prayers and bringing offerings such as incense, flowers, fruits and food, to the deities. The priest is a cousin of Cathay colleague A.A. Raka Setiawati, whose family comes from the Balinese caste Ksatrya.

Pictured in sarongs and sashes are Manager East Indonesia Rozana Lee, Assistant Manager Marketing & Passenger Sales Yenita Darsanti, R&T Officer A.A. Raka Setyawati and Messenger Nyoman.

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It was a challenging moment for Mumbai Finance team member Shobha Gowda when her 10-year-old son Devendra Gowda was bitten by a stray dog outside her residen-tial complex.

As the wound was deep and on the spinal cord, doctors warned about the chance of the rabies virus spreading to the brain.

Doctors suggested two doses of Berirab P, a rabies vaccine, as urgent immunisation.

The hunt for the prescribed medi-cine began almost immediately, only for Shobha to realise it was in-credibly hard to obtain.

A substitute that was suggested was equine rabies immunoglobulin, but it proved equally hard to source.

Shobha and her family, after run-ning pillar to post, were very deject-ed to learn that the injections were out of stock in the whole of Mumbai and the state of Maharashtra.

Their fears mounted as the day went on, as Devendra had to be in-jected within 72 hours of the bite.

Thanks to technology, Shobha’s story was soon spread via WhatsApp groups to colleagues and friends across the Cathay Pacific network.

Managers travelling within India

National hunt for a cure

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1. How long have you been collecting Coca-Cola items? For about 10 years, ever since I was a teen. I was drawn to the stylish yet classic design of Coca-Cola items.

2. Do you remember your very first collectible? The first one was simply a can with a Christmas theme in 2004.

3. How many bottles and cans do you have now? More than 400 – thanks to my fam-ily and friends who always bring back a bottle or two when they travel! I also have branded items like mugs and model cars.

4. Where do you keep them? A tailor-made display cabinet occupying half of my balcony.

5. What’s your most trea-sured item? A special-edition bottle commem-orating the launch of T3 at Beijing Capital International Airport.

6. Any wish-list items? I’d love a Coke bottle or can with my name printed on it!

7. Where do you want your hobby to lead? My dream is to open a shop to exchange my collector’s items with people who share the same interest.

8. Why did you choose to work in aviation? It’s my childhood dream. I lived under the flight path of Beijing’s military airport so I’ve grown up watching aircraft flying by.

9. How do you spend your spare time? I’m studying for my maintenance licence right now.

10. What’s your favourite destination?Hong Kong – perhaps because I’ve seen too many Hong Kong movies!

and overseas were soon all trying to get their hands on injections in their respective locations.

Almost every department in the India team had team members contacting chemist  stores, private distributors and hospitals to help Shobha.

Good news finally game 24 hours later.

A colleague confirmed that one injection was available in Mysore, a city close to Bengaluru in Karnataka state, 855km away from Mumbai.

Arrangements were made to have the vaccine transported imme-diately to Bengaluru and onwards to Mumbai.

Meanwhile, Shobha also received a call from a col-league in Hyderabad confirming availability of a vaccine in Chennai, some 1,300km away from the capital.

A cross-country relay ensured, with members of the Ca-thay team passing the vaccines to one another until they fi-nally reached Shobha and her family in Mumbai.

A novelist in our midstAt Cathay Pacific, the Corporate Safety Department’s Nina McGrath analyses data to make sure flight crew get enough sleep to do their job safely.

She also happens to be a prolific writer who has just completed her first novel.

Cash Cow, Nina’s debut novel, is a fictitious tell-all account of nannying in Australia.

“Many years ago, I worked as a nanny in Australia,” says Nina. “I regularly came home with strange or funny stories from my day at work which I shared with my family and friends. This inspired me to write a fictional novel about nannying to share the experience with a wider audience.”

“I have always been an avid reader, and once I had a story in mind I thought I might be able to write a novel,” she adds.

Living in Australia at the time, Nina took a novel-writing course to get started.

What followed was eight years of writing on and off whenever she could find the time – on her commute to and from work, in the evenings, on weekends and on holidays.

In that time Nina moved internationally twice – first to London and then to Hong Kong – and travelled regularly.

She became interested in expat and travel writing, and started to

post regularly on her website www.ninamcgrath.com, as well as contributing

to www.australiantimes.co.uk and www.holidaygoddess.com.

“Little by little, the first draft of Cash Cow came

together, then the second draft, until I

Both injections arrived at the airport in Mumbai two days after the bite. The Mumbai Cargo team helped clear the vaccinations and Devendra was able to receive his in-jection well in time.

“The overwhelming response

and unconditional support that I received from my colleagues and friends at Cathay were second to none,” the grateful mother says. “I’d like to thank my friends in Cathay for getting the smile back on my son’s face. It was truly Service Straight from the Heart – not for a passenger but for one of our own! I’m glad to be working for a company like this. Cathay has become my extended family.”

Shi Huayang Mechanic Trainee, Beijing

had a final draft and was ready to get it published,” Nina recalls.

The traditional publishing path involves potential authors sending hard-copy or email submissions to literary agents, or directly to publishers.

Instead, Nina was able to take advantage of an online self-publishing tool to ensure that her work made it to print.

“Agents and publishers receive so many submissions that they only reply to successful applicants. Many potential authors, including me, send many submissions but have no luck getting an agent or publisher,” Nina says.

Sites like Createspace.com and Kindle Direct Publishing allow authors to publish and sell their work via Amazon.com.

“Another benefit of Amazon publishing is that authors retain full creative control of their work, which does not happen with traditional publishers,” she says.

Since the book was published, Nina has been receiving great feedback from readers.

“Friends and family have been enjoying Cash Cow. Most are reporting that they read it quite quickly as they cared about the characters and wanted to find out what was going to happen next, which is an excellent sign,” she says.

SAFE AT LAST: Mumbai’s Shobha Gowda with her family.

Cash Cow is available in paperback and Kindle versions on www.amazon.com

BEST STATION: The Chicago Airport team got together to celebrate the fact that they were named

the best station around the network in 2014.

Last month, Transportation Services Superintendent Johnnie Lau retired after 37 years of service with the airline, although he admits that “waving goodbye to all friends and colleagues I’ve known for such a long time is not easy.”

Johnnie joined the Transport Service team as a driver back in 1978. “We had more than 100 drivers to serve internal customers, which

ranged from transferring crew between the terminal and aircraft at outer bays – which were quite prevalent at Kai Tak – to transporting crew to the airport from several pick-up points in town,” Johnnie says.

The team was also on call overnight to carry crew, ground staff and passengers home after prolonged disruptions.

As Cathay’s headquarters moved to Chek Lap Kok, Johnnie played an instrumental role in planning the routes and schedules of all the staff shuttles.

“The scale of operations became so big that we had to outsource most services to HAS and external operators,” Johnnie says. “But the transport team retains some vital functions, such as the shuttle services to HKIA and our key subsidiaries at Chek Lap Kok, as well as the mail bus to town each morning.”

Johnnie was later put in charge of monitoring the staff transportation service, gathering staff feedback and reviewing with the operators on a regular basis.

For the past two years of his career, Johnnie took up the additional role of chairing the Local Staff Union, of which he was one of the founding members.

“I was honoured to represent my colleagues to share and exchange viewpoints with the top management,” he says.

One of Johnnie’s fond memories is bidding for vehicle plates that start with “CX”.

“About 30 years ago, when the Transport Department started to roll out the suffix CX, the bossed decided that we should bid for some of those plates as the two letters hold a special meaning for us,” Johnnie says.

“We bought about 30 plates in total, like CX777 and CX1011, currently in use on two directors’ cars. Unfortunately we can’t deploy these car plates on every vehicle today as our fleet has grown to more than 40!”

Farewell, Johnnie!

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FIRST OUTING: The Cathay Catholic Cell is

pictured during their first lunchtime visit

to the Tung Chung Visitation Chapel in March.

Email REVLLL for details.

PAPER SCULPTOR: Accounts Assistant Sunali Anjula made gorgeous paper flowers for her account team members.

STAR TURN: CE Ivan Chu had the pleasure of hosting

Jermaine Jackson - of Jackson 5 fame – at Cathay City.

PAPER PLANE: Sahil Puthran from Customer Relations sent in this fun photo of his team.

HELLO AGAIN: Senior Purser Clarice Lee and her colleagues are

ecstatic that Cathay is flying to Switzerland again after a 14-year gap.

HIGH-FLYING TOT: JFK-based cabin crew

Theeranun Minalgo’s adorable son

Blake suited up in a pilot costume for

his Cathay City visit.

DOWN MEMORY LANE: Old photos from Johnnie’s eventful career at Cathay Pacific.

GREAT WILDERNESS: (top) Llamas at the Black Sheep Inn; (centre) an Ecuadorian lady overlooking the sacred crater lake; (bottom) Chugchilán from a distance.

Flight Purser Surasak Netraprajag details an eye-opening trip

Adventure in Ecuador

The journey to Chugchilán was a disorienting one. Signage for this Andean village was confusing,

directions in my copy of Lonely Planet were vague and bus timetables seemed all wrong.

When I finally managed to catch a bus, I found my-self sharing my ride with farm animals on the roof-top.

The road to Chugchilán stretchs from the Pan-American Highway – the longest in the world – to the Quilotoa Loop, also known as the most danger-ous highway in South America.

My perilous journey aside, the few days I spent in Chugchilán was the highlight of my trip to Ecuador.

I explored the area with Black Sheep Inn as my base.

The Black Sheep Inn is an impressive eco-lodge run by the personable Edmundo, who treats all guests like long-lost family members.

The inn provides three sumptuous vegetarian meals for guests every day.

I paired up with an Australian guest at the hotel to embark on day hikes in the surrounding valleys and mountains.

The highlight was the famous Quilotoa Lagoon, an otherworldly water-filled caldera that measures 3km wide.

Estimating the hike from our lodge to be around 10km, we decided to hitch a ride into Quilotoa and hike our way back.

#lifewelltravelledA monthly roundup of some of the most beautiful, provocative travel images submitted by fans of Cathay Pacific using the #lifewelltrav-elled Instagram hastag.

BOSTONAn unforgettable view of our lat-est destination from @javimejia.

VIETNAMA shell collection by @jilly100lc

all the way from Vietnam.

YANGONA morning like no other with this

magical sunrise over Bagan, captured by @annapurnauna.

KUALA LUMPUR@dennisowen snapped this

great night view of Kuala Lumpur.

SYDNEYA great, sunny Life Well Travelled moment at Bondi beach courtesy of @snap-pystreet.

BANGKOK@samantha_t shows us how to dine with a view in Bangkok: at Sirocco on the 63rd floor of the State Tower.

Although the route was very steep and slippery at times, I didn’t find it as difficult as others claimed.

In any case, the breathtaking views of the gor-geous crater lake and the valleys that surround it were definitely worth the effort.

The picturesque route back to Chugchilán wound through family farms, villages, peaks and valleys.

It was a trip I’ll look back on with a lot of fondness.The rural villagers and my fellow travellers were

amazingly friendly, and the unforgettable sights in the valley above the clouds will be imprinted in my memory in the years to come.

oneworld partner LAN Airlines has daily non-stop flights between New York and Quito. Alternatively, Iberia flies daily from Madrid to Quito.