Operational resilience at Hong Kong International Airport BOX 3 Hong Kong International Airport demonstrated the growing importance of operational resilience when Typhoon Ragasa caused major regional travel disruptions in September 2025. Despite extreme weather conditions, the airport maintained continuity by safely handling around 600 flights through proactive planning, real-time data sharing and close coordination across airlines, air traffic control and ground services. This experience highlights how preparedness and rapid response can significantly reduce disruption even during severe climate events.In anticipation of the storm’s impact, major carriers including Cathay Pacific and other Hong Kong- based airlines strategically relocated a significant portion of their fleets, with roughly 80% of aircraft flown to alternative airports across Asia, Europe and Australia,189 both to protect assets and to position them for a rapid return once conditions improved. This experience highlights how preparedness and agile coordination between the airport and airline partners can significantly reduce disruption even during severe climate events. Labour availability and relations emerged as significant challenges in 2025. Government shutdowns, pay disputes and staffing shortages led to widespread flight cancellations and delays across multiple regions, including North America, Europe and Asia. Most notably, the US government shutdown in November 2025 resulted in flight caps at major airports, resulting in thousands of flights being cancelled or delayed.190 In Canada, negotiations over staff pay for 10,000 cabin crew resulted in significant flight cancellations and government intervention.191 In some instances, these disruptions coincided with heightened safety scrutiny, further compounding operational challenges. Rostering issues and apparent pilot shortages in India in December 2025 also caused the cancellation of thousands of flights, at a time of increased scrutiny over safety and in a market in great expansion.192 While the nature of these issues might be temporary, workforce instability appears to present a longer-term challenge that will continue to affect operational reliability and strategic planning across the aviation ecosystem in 2026. During his speech to ICAO’s 42nd Assembly, the US Secretary of Transport lamented that the US has “a nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers”.193 Looking ahead, challenges with pilot and air traffic controller shortages could be compounded by the incoming advent of eVTOLs and other such advanced air mobility (AAM) solutions, which will increase labour demand and congestion in the skies. Beyond pilots, the wider workforce is one of the enablers of the energy transition in the aviation sector. Executives consulted for this report agreed on the imperative to embed sustainability in every aspect of a company’s culture and its strategic and operational decision-making. This cultural shift would contribute to both operational excellence and staff retention. It could be brought about by up-skilling and re-skilling workers for digital and sustainability competences, improving data availability and educating employees on how to maximize the benefits of lower emissions operations.5.2 Workforce instability presents ongoing challenges Executives agreed that embedding sustainability in every aspect of a company’s culture and decision- making would contribute to both operational excellence and staff retention. Global Aviation Sustainability Outlook 2026 46