Cathay Pacific on course to reach pre-pandemic levels

Dubai — Cathay Pacific is on track to reach 100% of its pre-pandemic passenger flights by the first quarter of 2025, having reached 80% of capacity within the second quarter of this year, CEO Ronald Lam said on Sunday.

Hong Kong’s flagship airline, which made heavy losses and layoffs during the pandemic, had aimed to reach 100% capacity by the end of 2024, but in March moved the target back three months.

Cathay reported its first annual profit in four years in March, however executives said they expect yields to normalise this year as the post-pandemic global imbalance between supply of flights and travel demand that drove up ticket prices and airline yields diminishes as airlines add capacity.

“Indeed we’re seeing that this year… the yield has been normalising gradually, coming down from last year. In particular, the supply and demand balancing is going quicker on the regional, the short-haul routes,” Lam told reporters during an airline conference in Dubai.

The carrier restored capacity more slowly after the pandemic than its closest rival, Singapore Airlines, because it faced tighter quarantine rules for longer, and needed to hire more staff to bring back services.

Lam said Cathay’s plan to expand its workforce by about 20%, or 5,000 people, this year was also on track.

Reuters