Hong Kong’s travel restrictions continue to hamper the traffic performance of home carrier Cathay Pacific, but there are marginal signs of improvement, including a narrower half-year loss forecast.
Recent adjustments to Hong Kong’s travel restrictions started to have an impact on traffic figures in May, says the airline.
During the month, it carried 57,982 passengers, more than double the number carried in May 2021, but still 98% lower than in May 2019.
“The introduction of further adjustments to travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in Hong Kong from 1 May was a welcome development, although our business during the month remained constrained,” says chief customer and commercial officer Ronald Lam.
“We increased our passenger flight capacity by 78% compared with April, but we still only operated about 4% of our pre-pandemic levels. Traffic volume in terms of RPK increased 94% month on month, and this was driven primarily by long-haul flights. As a result, overall load factor reached 60.5%.”
Cathay adds that the addition of flight capacity in the second quarter, as well as continued strength in the cargo market, will help it narrow its losses for the first half of 2022.
Read original article
