The modified passenger cabin of a Cathay Pacific Boeing 777 aircraft

HAECO Xiamen, a member of the HAECO (Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company Limited) Group, announced today it has provided Cathay Pacific Airways (Cathay Pacific) with a successful design engineering and certification solution that will allow the airline to utilise sections of its Boeing 777 passenger cabins in order to carry cargo.

The modification is covered by a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) and has been directly approved by the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department (HKCAD). It also uses HAECO Xiamen’s HKCAD Part 21J Design Organisation Approval (DOA). The scope of work involves removing economy and premium economy seats to install cargo bags, which are secured with cargo nets and straps, and other associated safety equipment. The modification has been designed to be in line with Boeing’s Multi Operator Message (MOM-MOM-20-0239-16B) guidelines. The modification kit was directly sourced and fabricated on site by HAECO Xiamen.

In addition, HAECO Xiamen has obtained HKCAD’s minor change approval for Cathay Pacific, which allows cargo to be placed on the seats of the airline’s Airbus A330 aircraft. This second modification kit, again fabricated by HAECO Xiamen, includes cargo bags secured onto the existing seat structures. It has been reclassified by HKCAD as a minor change on a time-limited basis.

Both solutions will allow Cathay Pacific to utilise a greater number of its aircraft for cargo-bearing flights, enabling the airline to carry more essential goods internationally during the COVID-19 pandemic.