The reality is that in the 80's and 90's the Chinese Airlines had a terrible safety reputation and Cathay Pacific and Dragonair thrived with essentially zero competition to the mainland. Then it all changed in 1997 when Hong Kong became a SAR of China. The one country, two systems has been steadily diluted over the 20 years, and the Chinese airlines are no longer crashing airliners these days. Hong Kong is simply a small city and is no longer as important in the eyes of the Mainland. Sadly, wonderful airlines such as Cathay/Dragon will dwindle into nothingness or as directed by the Mainland - and there is nothing anyone can do about this. Burning extra fuel or any type of industrial action in the hopes that Swire will one day see the light is nothing short of sad and misguided. Revel in the memories of what the airline was once if you must, but it's time to either move on or begin to enjoy the what precious time you left with the airline and life in Hong Kong.