Pilots licence revoked after vaping

China has revoked the licences of two Air China pilots after a vaping incident in the cockpit forced an emergency descent last week.

A passenger flight from Hong Kong to Dalian had to drop more than 21,000ft due to a sudden loss of cabin pressure.

Investigators said it was caused by one of the pilots smoking an e-cigarette. The civil aviation body fined the airline and cut the carrier’s flights with Boeing 737 models by 10 per cent. The mid-air drama unfolded when one of the pilots, who was vaping, tried to turn off a fan to stop his smoke reaching the passenger cabin.