Summary
- Cathay Pacific resumes Chennai-Hong Kong flight after 4 years.
- The airline has added several other services as a part of its network recovery plan, catering to diverse customer requirements.
- Cathay Pacific and Hong Kong International Airport have made progress within the last 12 months but are still behind pre-pandemic levels.
Cathay Pacific’s network recovery continues because it adds one other Indian city to the list. The carrier has resumed the Chennai-Hong Kong flight, which was suspended throughout the pandemic. The airline was one of the crucial affected by the COVID-19 pandemic but has shown significant improvements in business within the last 12 months.
Chennai to Hong Kong
Cathay Pacific has announced the resumption of service between Chennai (MAA) in South India and its hub in Hong Kong (HKG). The flight on this route resumed after a spot of 4 years on February 2 and can operate 3 times every week.
Photo: Omid Behzadpour | Shutterstock
Cathay is the one airline currently flying the MAA-HKG route, however the carrier also serves Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru with non-stop flights. Three other Indian airlines connect Delhi with Hong Kong, and together, all of them offer greater than 350 monthly flights between India and Hong Kong, per Cirium.
Recovery mode
Each Cathay Pacific and Hong Kong International Airport have made significant progress within the last several months when it comes to business recovery. While there’s still a while before they reach pre-pandemic levels, the recent uptick in passengers has been encouraging.
The Cathay Pacific Group (which also includes HK Express) carried 20 million passengers in 2023, a six-fold increase from 2022. Of this, Cathay alone flew 17.98 million passengers in its first full yr of operations for the reason that strict travel restrictions were eased.
The airline’s cargo business also saw an uptick, mainly as a result of the movement of several racehorses across its network to support Hong Kong’s international events. Cathay carried almost 1.4 million tonnes of cargo in 2023, registering a 15% year-on-year increase.
Photo: heychli | Shutterstock
Honk Kong Airport has managed to get better just 50% of its pre-pandemic capability, but in comparison with 2022, this recovery is sort of remarkable. For instance, the airport handled 4.32 million passengers in December, greater than double the 1.60 million in 2022. But this dwarfs compared to the 6.53 million travelers it handled in December 2018.
Nevertheless, with major passenger markets returning for each Cathay and HKG, each are expected to make further business recovery in 2024.
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