ermen

My CX635 (an A359) was delayed today...

Reason: because the paint was peeling at the front and the engineers had to check it out...

Enough said.

Kachjc

well CX is by far one of the most anal airlines for safety and security...

how long was the delay?!!

pheonix254

Paintwork isn't really supposed to peel. It usually means something is wrong - a previous lightning strike, bird strike, indication of structural issues, moisture ingress, fractures, composite delamination; all sorts of things.

If something like this is discovered, no matter how inane it might seem, it is checked: that way you reduce accidents. In all likelihood, it's nothing or something which will not affect the safety of the flight. Perhaps though, in your sort of "winning the lottery/getting hit by an asteroid" style chance, an inspection uncovers severe structural damage which in the worst case scenario causes a subsequent explosive decompression event. You might think the aerospace industry is insane, checking for things that have a >99.9% chance of not happening, but when the required safety level is several orders of magnitude greater than that, then it's checked.

Cathay are simply following established industry best practice when it comes to safety here, unsurprising particularly given the A350 is a comparitively new aircraft which doesn't have billions of operating hours under its belt.

CX HK

I have a lot to criticize CX about, but this point I appreciate a lot from them!

fakecd

i second that whilst i hate delay, for safety check like this i feel reassured its handled well.

ermen

it was delayed 40mins.

It was more a reference to the A359 J product falling apart .. Now if they delayed everytime for that!

Cathay Dragon 666

Paint peeling, even inside the cabin, can mean something serious. In your case I'm glad Cathay takes it seriously.

This is one of the few times that I missed Cathay: safety first.

KrazyTrain18

Cathay's stellar safety standards are often overlooked these days in the competitive environment they operate in. One of the aspects that continues to remain world class, despite the shoddy practices of many competing carriers.

Arbeysix

I couldn't agree more. It is why I will continue to choose CX over rivals even when it means significantly extending my journey time to connect via HKG. Many posters to this sight ignore this fact. There is a MATERIAL difference between CX safety standards (including crew quality and judgement) over many of its rivals, old and new.

1010101

Exactly. I know enough pilots flying around Asia to know it extends to piloting standards too. Whatever they might do to the product, as long as they keep the safety standards up I'll keep flying them over their supposedly superior competitors.