Speech at Panel on Economic Development

Proposed legislative amendments relating to the carriage of dangerous goods by air

Dangerous goods carried by passengers and crew

Mr CHAN Chun-ying expressed support for the proposed legislative amendments given that China recognized the international rights and obligations arising from the Convention on International Civil Aviation and its associated regulations, and these rights and obligations were also applicable to Hong Kong. Pointing out the importance of providing clear information on ICAO’s latest standards to the public so as to avoid inadvertent breaches of the requirements, he called on the Administration to improve the clarity on the relevant information set out in the Packing Tips for Air Passengers (“Packing Tips”) available on CAD’s website. In particular, he was concerned whether the maximum volume of toiletry articles allowed to be carried by passengers in their cabin baggage would be based on the container volume (whether fully or partially filled) or the actual volume of the article filled in the container.

Assistant Director-General of Civil Aviation (Airport Standards) (“ADGCA(APS)”) replied that to meet ICAO’s requirements on the carriage of liquids, aerosols and gels in cabin baggage, the maximum quantity of toiletry articles allowed to be carried by passengers in their cabin baggage would be based on the capacity of the container, even though it was only partially filled.

Mr CHAN Chun-ying noted that with effect from 1 January 2019, aircraft and airport operators, shippers and freight forwarders were required to comply with the latest amendments to the TIs promulgated by ICAO. He asked about the compliance situation and if there were any controversial issues. In response, ADGCA(APS) advised that the new standards had been smoothly implemented without major issues so far.