Cathay Pacific has announced that it will invest HK$100 billion in Hong Kong International Airport “to strengthen its international aviation hub status”.
Cathay Group’s major investment in Hong Kong
The Cathay Group (Cathay) has committed more than HK$100 billion in investments over the next seven years “as part of its bold strategy to further elevate its customer experience, and strengthen Hong Kong’s international aviation hub status riding on the Three-Runway System”.
This includes major investments in its fleet, cabin products, lounges, and digital and sustainability leadership “as it sets its sights on growing for its customers, its people and its home, Hong Kong”.
Upgrading passenger experience
A major part of the investments is upgrading the passenger experience. Cathay Pacific announced an order for 30 Airbus A330-900neo aircraft to replace its ageing A330-300 fleet. These new regional widebody aircraft are expected to be delivered from 2028, and will join the Cathay Pacific fleet principally serving destinations in Asia.
The group now has more than 100 new-generation aircraft in its delivery pipeline, with the right to acquire over 80 additional aircraft in future. These include orders for narrowbody, regional widebody, long-haul widebody, and large freighter aircraft.
Cathay Pacific recently unveiled Aria Suite – the airline’s new Business Class for its B777-300ER (Extra Range) fleet – as well as new Premium Economy seats and refreshed Economy Class seats. The airline is scheduled to take delivery of the highly-delayed B777-9 aircraft in 2025, if things go according to plan. It will unveil a new First Class for the B777-9s, followed by a brand new cabin and flat-bed Business class product on its existing A330 aircraft in 2026. This means that the carrier is planning to keep the older A330s for quite some time.
In addition to new cabin products, complimentary Wi-Fi will be progressively offered to Business class passengers and Diamond members in the coming months.
On the ground, Cathay Pacific will be launching newly designed flagship lounges in Hong Kong, Beijing and, for the first time, a dedicated lounge in New York, over the next three years.
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Slow and steady
Cathay Pacific was one of the worst hit airline during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hong Kong was closed for a long period of time, not helping much with the recovery. Some aviation experts even said that Hong Kong will not be able to gain its “aviation hub” status back. However, Hong Kong’s home airline – Cathay Pacific – is recovering slowly and steadily. At least, the 2024 financial results say so.
As a Group, Cathay reported an attributable profit of HK$3.6 billion in the first half of 2024. This compares with a profit of HK$4.3 billion in the first half of 2023. The group says that the year-on-year reduction is “principally attributable to the normalisation of ticket prices”.
All of the aircraft that were in long-term parking have returned, and Cathay remains on track to reach 100% of its pre-pandemic flights within the first quarter of 2025 as planned. To support that pace of growth, Cathay is making good progress with increasing its Group headcount by 5,000 people this year to a total of 29,000.
Featured image by Cathay Pacific
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