Hong Kong civil aviation authorities have ordered pilots on local carriers to lock cockpit doors after take-off in new guidelines issued after the terror attacks in the US, a spokeswoman said Thursday.
"We ... issued letters to Cathay Pacific Airways and Dragonair early this week [outlining] new requirements, to be imposed with immediate effect, as part of a move to enhance aviation safety," a spokeswoman for the civil aviation department said.
In addition to locking cockpit doors, cabin crew are also required to ask permission from the captain through the intercom before entering the flight deck.
The new order also bans visitors from the cockpit, the spokeswoman said.
A spokeswoman for Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airways said the airline already required the cockpit door to be locked "most of the time", but added the new measure would be implemented.
A spokeswoman for Dragonair, meanwhile, said: "We are implementing the new procedures right now".
Nearly 6,000 people remain missing after terrorists used hijacked airliners to last week destroy the World Trade Center in New York and damage the Pentagon in Washington -- HONG KONG (AFP)
