Spotlight is always given to shipbuilding, an industry once prosperous in the history of Hong Kong industry. But rarely being mentioned is the worldly known aircraft maintenance industry in Hong Kong. It is a flourishing and sustainable branch of Hong Kong’s aviation industry even today. And no doubt about it, Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company (HAECO) is the leading player.

Early HAECO did not provide systematic training for the aviation profession. However, since the founding of a formal training unit in 1957, HAECO had become the cradle of the aviation industry. For there was only one business enterprise offering aviation maintenance services in Hong Kong, most of the professionals in the field stayed with the company for a whole life. Some of them even introduced friends to join the company, thus cultivating an atmosphere of extended family among the staffs. In 1986, HAECO made an initiative in Hong Kong’s business sector to establish a clubhouse and the “Veterans Club”. The clubhouse then provides a place where more than a thousand retired personnel would gather and meet with old friends. It is also the Club where the contributor of this exhibition meets the veterans and discovers their stories; their stories then become valuable records to preserve and the important cultural memories of the Hong Kong aviation industry.

Thanks should be given to the Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company and HAECO Veteran Club for their unfailing support to this project. Also thank Lai Siu Hang and Li Kai Yu for designing the exhibition, and Ho Lok Ka for proofreading.