Cathay unmasked

Cathay Pacific Airways appears to have made a PR blunder over its handling of the swine flu issue.

The Oneworld carrier, like many other airlines, has been implementing measures on board flights to help mitigate the spread of swine flu.

But when its cabin crew declared that they wanted to wear face masks to protect their own health, the airline refused.

The matter quickly made it into the Hong Kong press which took delight in exposing Cathay's contradictory behaviour.

This then led Cathay to do the PR equivalent of a back-flip by announcing that cabin crew will be allowed to wear face-masks if they want to.

Its good to see Cathay does care about the health of its employees. That's a much better image for the airline to have.