The airline said on Tuesday (3 September) it has identified 15 aircraft with faulty engine components as a result of a fleet-wide inspection, launched after a flight from Hong Kong to Zurich was forced to turn around earlier this week due to an “engine component failure”. 

“We immediately brought this issue to the attention of the aircraft and engine manufacturers as well as our regulators,” an airline spokesperson told TTG. “As a precautionary measure, a fleet-wide inspection of our A350 aircraft was initiated immediately.”

Cathay Pacific has so far axed 24 return flights to destinations including Bangkok, Sydney and Singapore while another 10 regional services will likely be cancelled on Wednesday (4 September).

The airline expects to have more information on additional cancellations for remaining cancellations up to Saturday (7 September) by 2pm Wednesday. “We expect that all affected aircraft will resume operations by [then]," Cathay said. 

Meanwhile, an Airbus spokesperson added: “Airbus is working closely with Rolls-Royce and Cathay. At this time it would be inappropriate for us to comment further, pending the ongoing investigation."

Airbus A350 are used by other carriers such as British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Singapore Airlines.