Hong Kong and Canada have expanded an existing agreement to allow mutual recognition of aircraft maintenance approval.

The Civil Aviation Department's Director-General Norman Lo and Transport Canada's Civil Aviation Director-General Merlin Preuss signed a Memorandum of Understanding known as "Technical Arrangement on Aircraft Maintenance" in Montreal today.

Both parties signed an original agreement on December 5. This expansion of it allows aircraft maintenance organisations in Hong Kong to provide maintenance service to aircraft registered in Canada without the need for additional approval from Transport Canada's Civil Aviation Directorate. Aircraft maintenance organisations in Canada may also provide maintenance service to aircraft registered in Hong Kong.

Mr Lo said the reduction in the authorities' duplication of approval and oversight audit work through the mutual recognition maximised the regulators' and the industry's resources use.

"This is extremely beneficial to the fast expanding aviation industry. It is one of our goals to extend the mutual recognition arrangement to other authorities in the foreseeable future," he said.

Mr Lo is and four other Civil Aviation Department staff are in Montreal attending the Directors General of Civil Aviation Conference on Global Strategy for Aviation Safety from March 20 to 22.