Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu on Thursday reaffirmed the city’s ambition to become a premier aircraft recycling hub in Asia — an initiative that will create high-skilled, well-paid jobs and solidify the city’s status as a global aviation leader.

Lee made his remarks at the launch ceremony of an aircraft engineering training center near Hong Kong International Airport.

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The center, jointly established by French aeronautics service company Elior Group SA and the Hong Kong International Aviation Academy (HKIAA), will train mechanics in aircraft assembly and dismantling skills.

Based in a China Aircraft Services hangar, the center aims to train 300 mechanics annually during the initial stage, with formal courses set to begin in early 2026.

“I'm confident that the training center we operate today will inspire a world-class talent pool, propelling Hong Kong's emergence as Asia’s aircraft engineering, recycling (and) trading center,” Lee told those attending the ceremony.

Lee highlighted Hong Kong’s aircraft parts recycling industry as a strategic industry in his October Policy Address, and its partnership with Elior — a decades-long specialist in the field — is expected to serve as a key accelerator.

At Wednesday’s ceremony, the chief executive said that Hong Kong’s goal is to build a flourishing regional supply chain that captures the full aviation lifecycle.

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The growth in aircraft recycling and parts training will create higher-skilled, better-paid jobs, delivering long-term economic benefits and securing Hong Kong’s leading position in aviation, Lee said.

“The training center’s opening is only the beginning. We will work closely with Elior to identify other promising opportunities in the aviation industry,” Lee added.

Also at the ceremony, Daniel Derichebourg, CEO of Elior Group, explained that Hong Kong was chosen as the starting point for the group’s expansion in Asia for three key reasons: its strategic location, its outstanding business environment, and its close ties with the Chinese mainland.

Derichebourg said (in French) that he is confident that Hong Kong will soon cultivate a skilled workforce equipped with the necessary expertise to form the foundations of the industry.

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Vivian Cheung Kar-fay, CEO of the Airport Authority, said that the training provided by the new center will further enhance the HKIAA’s role in building a world-class aviation training hub, since the academy has successfully trained nearly 400,000 students in different aviation disciplines over the past decade.

“This embodies our vision for developing a robust talent pool for the aviation industry, at the same time extending Hong Kong’s soft power,” she said.

After the ceremony, HKIAA President Simon Li Tin-chui told reporters that the center will equip Hong Kong with more aircraft maintenance experts to meet future demand.

Li also said that the center is in preliminary discussion with the Commercial Aircraft Corp of China to potentially introduce maintenance courses for the C919 airliner, China's self-developed large passenger plane, with a vision to build the city into a global training hub for homegrown jets.

Valeria Shan contributed to the story.

Contact the writer at williamxu@chinadailyhk.com