Cathay Pacific Airways today received notification from the Chairman of Hong Kong`s Air Transport Licensing Authority (ATLA), High Court Justice William Stone, that ATLA`s hearing into Cathay Pacific`s application for licenses to fly to the three Chinese Mainland cities of Shanghai, Beijing and Xiamen will commence on 23 January 2003, as originally scheduled.

Cathay Pacific Director Corporate Development Tony Tyler said: “Cathay Pacific would have been happy to defer the hearing to a date in May in order to allow time for consideration and discussion of Dragonair`s proposals. However we fully accept the ATLA Chairman`s ruling that it is in the public interest for the hearing to commence as scheduled next week, and we are ready to make our case.”

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