Cathay Pacific operates over 10,000 flights in single month for first time

Dhaka: Cathay Pacific reached the milestone of operating more than 10,000 passenger and cargo flights in a single month for the first time in 2024, according to its traffic figures for October 2024 released on November 21.

The Hong Kong-based airline carried a total of 2,014,105 passengers in October 2024, an increase of 19.6 per cent, compared with October 2023.

The month’s revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs) increased 19.1 per cent year on year. Passenger load factor decreased by 1.6 percentage points to 83.1 per cent, while available seat kilometres (ASKs) increased by 21.3 per cent year on year.

In the first 10 months of 2024, the number of passengers carried increased by 27.4 per cent to a total of 18,567,818, against a 32.7 per cent increase in ASKs and a 26.8 per cent increase in RPKs, as compared with the same period for 2023.

Additionally, the carrier transported 142,323 tonnes of cargo in October 2024, an increase of 14.3 per cent compared with October 2023.

The month’s cargo revenue tonne kilometres (RFTKs) increased 9.8 per cent year on year. The cargo load factor increased by 0.8 percentage points to 61.5 per cent, while available cargo tonne kilometres (AFTKs) increased by 8.4 per cent year on year.

In the first 10 months of 2024, the tonnage increased by 10.4 per cent to a total of 1,245,899 tonnes, against an 8.8 per cent increase in AFTKs and a 4.1 per cent increase in RFTKs, as compared with the same period for 2023.

“In terms of new destinations, Cathay Pacific’s seasonal service of three flights per week between Hong Kong and Cairns will launch on December 17, 2024,” said Lavinia Lau, Chief Customer and Commercial Officer, Cathay Pacific.

“Recently, we also announced the resumption of Cathay Pacific’s non-stop passenger services to and from Hyderabad starting from March 30, 2025, further enhancing our network presence in India,” she added.  

“Additionally, HK Express launched thrice-weekly passenger flights between Hong Kong and Hiroshima at the start of November, increasing to four return flights per week in January 2025,” further informed the CCCO.

Lau also mentioned, “For cargo, the robust demand we have been seeing is expected to continue throughout the rest of the peak season, driven by e-commerce, high-tech and electronic goods from the Chinese Mainland, Southeast Asia, as well as perishables from South West Pacific and the Americas.”

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