Eleven people needed hospital treatment on Saturday after an emergency evacuation of a Cathay Pacific flight that aborted take-off at the Hong Kong International Airport.

Cathay said flight CX880 to Los Angeles taxied back to a parking stand, where passengers evacuated via emergency slides.

The incident happened shortly after midnight and the fire service was on the scene immediately to help the injured. Cathay said the take-off was abandoned followed the discovery of a technical issue, while the Airport Authority characterised the problem as a signal anomaly. Police said early on Saturday that a tyre was thought to have burst.

Cathay apologised and said it would cooperate with authorities in their investigation.

The carrier said in a statement that the flight "performed an aborted take-off in accordance with standard procedures after a technical issue was detected by the crew".

Crew then initiated a precautionary passenger evacuation after the aircraft returned to the gate, with passengers exiting the plane via six escape slides, the airline said.

It added that overnight hotel accommodation was arranged for those affected, and 283 of the 293 passengers were put on another aircraft, which departed for Los Angeles shortly after 10am.

"Alternate arrangements have also been made for those with connecting flights to their destinations," it said.

As of 10.30am, nine of the 11 passengers receiving treatment at hospitals had been discharged. The carrier said its staff would continue to provide support to the two passengers who were still in hospital, and their families.

The government said it was highly concerned, and that both the Civil Aviation Department and the Air Accident Investigation Authority will look into what happened.

More than 10 ambulances were called to the scene. The injured were sent to Princess Margaret Hospital and North Lantau Hospital.
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Last updated: 2023-06-24 HKT 11:47