Cathay Pacific chairman Patrick Healy says Hong Kong’s aviation sector has to work with Belt and Road partners to reach its aim of decarbonisation.

Healy, who is part of Chief Executive John Lee’s 70-member delegation to attend the two-day Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing from Tuesday, also said there will be a “dramatic shift” in the airline’s strategic approach.

“One way that Cathay Pacific looks at our post-Covid recovery is that we wish to transform our definition of our home market from Hong Kong only to the whole of the Greater Bay Area (GBA),” he told RTHK.

“So our ambition is to become the connector, really, between Hong Kong and the whole of the GBA and the Belt and Road market.”

He added decarbonisation is one of the challenges the sector is facing, and that collaboration with Belt and Road partners can make it possible to achieve this goal.

Healy explained that partnerships between Hong Kong, the GBA, the mainland and belt-road partners are vital to developing sustainable aviation fuels.

These partnerships, he said, will also be crucial in developing supply chains for these fuels “which will be able to supply the aviation industry in the coming decades”.

Healy also said he has “tremendous confidence” in the city’s aviation sector, as the third runway system – which starts operation in 2024 – is expected to boost the Hong Kong International Airport’s capacity by 50 percent.