CX passenger spent 3 months at HKIA!
 

"The Terminal" in real life - wow!
https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/...t-three-months

​​​​​​The individual departed Canada on a Cathay Pacific flight heading to Vietnam in March but ended up remaining at the airport due to the border restrictions. The traveller finally entered the city on Thursday (2 July). ​​​​​​

It is unclear why the man repeatedly refused to leave the airport. A local lawmaker speculated, "He may not have sufficient means to support himself and pay for his expenses in Hong Kong". Apparently “Immigration will not be very proactive to sort out if he is a Hongkonger" and "If you don’t breach security and don’t pose risks to other passengers or yourself then we’ll just leave you [in the transit area]."

Interestingly, the airline was required to care for him, providing him with free food and drink during his stay. Wonder if he was put up in a Cabana, with meals provided at The Wing, throughout the period? :)

Separately, it would appear that a British Airways passenger who lives in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, is still refusing to leave the transit zone. The 63-year-old woman has refused all offers to be flown to the mainland via London for free.

The airline does not have to do much, contrary to your belief.

The experience was entirely due to government actions that the airline has no control. The passenger could invoke trip-in-vein and asked CX to transport back to Canada. For unknown reasons, the passengers did not.

Hence the prolonged stay.

yeah, it was totally the passenger’s choice to remain there. I’d love to know why the hell anyone would do that to themselves...

Transit area =/= departure area lounges

IIRC - HKIA has not designated any area as "transit area". The way I see it, it should the area related to transit, i.e. the transit counters and security checkpoints. And they are mostly a part of the arrival area.

Wouldn't it be an interesting plot twist if the guy was traveling on the ex Vietnam mistake fare!? :D

Interesting that as a HK citizen he wasn't forced to leave the airport.

DO we know that he was a HK citizen?

The whole situation looks like different HK agencies passing the ball around.

SCMP reporting that he had HK residency/right of abode.

If this is the case, this is straightly stupidity at best.

On the contrary. Perhaps he doesn’t have a home to go to in HK, and staying in the airport where he can be safe and have food and drink provided for by the airlines - sounds like a good place to live for free!

Seems this “lawmaker Jeremy Tam Man-ho, an aviation expert and former pilot” does a lot of commenting on various cases, but is ineffective in getting answers. :)

Don't blame him for the ineffectiveness. In many cases, the Government and/or related entity refuses to explain its position. Case-in-point: the CE CX affair was resolved by the Court. Yet, we still don't know if the CE has pressured CX to do things.

He had to leave CX last year due to political pressure.

Really? Shouldn't precisely a lawmaker have the right to demand answers, instead of conveying pontifications, deductions and personal opinions to the press?