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Just How Many Flights Is Cathay Pacific Now Operating?

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COVID-19 continues to loom large on Cathay Pacific’s network, with tight travel restrictions reducing the airline’s flights to a bare minimum. While flights to mainland China are less affected, the carrier’s traditionally popular destinations such as London, Sydney, and San Francisco are currently seeing just a handful of flights. According to Cathay Pacific, its already weak network will thin out even further in the coming months.

Cathay Pacific A350
Cathay Pacific has had to cut down its schedule massively due to crew restrictions. Photo: Getty Images

No respite on the horizon

COVID-related crew restrictions imposed by the Hong Kong government have severely hampered Cathay Pacific’s network recovery. While its annual loss for 2021 was not as harsh as predicted, the airline’s overall passenger and cargo flight network is frightfully lower than pre-COVID days.

In December 2021, Cathay Pacific flew a total of 92,219 passengers – more than 130% than December 2020 but just 3.1% compared to December 2019. January 2022 isn’t looking much better, with passenger flights operating at just 2% and cargo at 20% of its pre-pandemic capacity.

The airline’s Chief Executive Officer Augustus Tang stated on Monday,

“On the travel side, we will strive to maintain passenger connectivity with key destinations, although at reduced frequencies, under the confines of the place-specific and flight-specific suspension mechanism. While passenger flights to the Chinese Mainland will remain largely unaffected, capacity to the rest of the Cathay Pacific network will see a reduction to ensure continued compliance with the latest Government measures.”

cathay-pacific-november-2021- traffic-results-Getty
The carrier is operating just 2% of its pre-pandemic schedule. Photo: Getty Images

Flights to Mainland China

Cathay Pacific’s network to mainland China fares slightly better compared to other destinations. The carrier has scheduled flights to five Chinese cities – Beijing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, and Shanghai – of which only Beijing is connected with daily flights. Shanghai has flights every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday, while Hangzhou saw just two flights this month on the 3rd and 10th.

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan saw just one Cathay Pacific flight in January on the 1st – to Osaka – while Kuala Lumpur currently has a single flight every Tuesday. The only flight to Bangkok this month is scheduled on the 29th, and barring the two flights on the 2nd and 9th, there were no other flights to Seoul scheduled this month. Other Asian destinations such as Manila, Jakarta, and Ho Chi Minh City also have a handful of flights combined.

Australia, North America, and Europe

A once-bustling network of Cathay Pacific to Europe, North America, and Australia is now just a shadow of its former self. There’s not a single city in all three continents to have a daily flight from the airline.

Both Toronto and Canada have a combined total of 10 flights this month, with just one flight to Vancouver remaining on the 29th. In the United States, San Francisco had just one Cathay Pacific flight this month (on the 25th), New York City has six, with only one remaining on the 30th, and Los Angeles with five (the next and last flight is on the 29th).

Qatar Airways, Cathay Pacific, Boeing 777
Most flights to Europe, North America, and Australia have been slashed. Photo: Getty Images

Australia – one of the biggest destinations for Cathay Pacific pre-COVID – saw just nine flights to Sydney, of which only two remain on the 28th and 30th.

Just two cities in Europe are scheduled to welcome flights from the carrier – London and Amsterdam. While the latter has just one flight scheduled this month (on the 30th), London has 11 scheduled Cathay Pacific flights, with the last two on the 26th and 30th.

Cash burn

Cathay Pacific had a surprise profit in the second half of last year, thanks to the strong cargo demand, but it is forecasting to burn cash again. The airline estimates it will burn through HK$1 billion to HK$1.5 billion a month starting February due to tightened crew quarantine restrictions, resulting in a further drop in some of its destinations.

If the airline’s passenger flight schedule looks dismal enough for January, next month looks no better. Entire North America will see just eight flights in February, but there will be newer additions to Australia and the UK, namely Melbourne and Manchester.

Until the Hong Kong government eases travel and quarantine restrictions for the crew, things are looking rather gloomy for Cathay Pacific.

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