Following the publication of a number of photographs which allegedly show two members of Cathay Pacific’s air crew performing a sexual act, the airline has decided to delay its latest global marketing campaign. Although the Hong Kong-based carrier has not issued any details about the roles of the employees said to be involved, Chinese newspapers claim that the couple are a male pilot and air stewardess.

It appears that the pair are engaged in the act in the cockpit of a Cathay passenger plane. However, John Slosar, the airline’s chief executive, has issued a statement in which he says there is no evidence to suggest that the incident took place while the jet was in the air.

Cathay will now hand all of its evidence over to the Civil Aviation Department in Hong Kong for further investigation. The airline has confirmed that the two people in the pictures are no longer employed by Cathay Pacific.

A spokeswoman for the Hong Kong-based carrier said the marketing campaign which was due to be launched next month had been pushed to 1 October. She added that Cathay did not believe the original launch date was appropriate. The advertising suggests that cabin crew are willing to go the extra mile to keep passengers’ satisfied, something that could possibly be misconstrued in light of the scandal.

Slosar said that anything which damaged the reputation of Cathay’s staff or the company was unacceptable and would not be tolerated. Some of the photographs also found their way onto the internet.