Two flights return to Hong Kong shortly after taking off; no injuries reported

Two flights operated by Cathay Pacific and HK Express returned to the airport shortly after they took off on Friday. Both flights landed safely and no injuries were reported. 

The first incident involved CX 596 operated by Cathay which was scheduled to take off at 8.10 am today and was expected to arrive in Osaka, Japan around 1 pm. 

The aircraft with 294 passengers onboard took off at 8.36 am and 45 minutes later, police and firefighters received reports that the plane was returning to the airport as the cargo door was found unlocked. 

Sources said the warning signal of the plane’s sensor was activated at 9.15 am, indicating that the cargo door was not locked. The aircraft landed safely at 9.43 am with no injuries reported. 

Cathay said it had arranged another aircraft to fly passengers to Japan before 12.30 pm and apologized for the inconvenience. 

Police officers and firefighters were seen standing by in the area when the plane returned. 

The second incident saw Taiwan-bound flight UO 132 returning to Chek Lap Kok at 1.31 pm after it took off at 12.45 pm. 

The flight made the return due to issues with the aircraft’s wings. 

According to the Airport Authority’s website, the flight was rescheduled at 3 pm.