Hong Kong-based flag carrier Cathay Pacific has said in a statement that its passenger numbers remain 99 percent lower than 2019 levels. This is mostly due to reduced capacity to combat the spread of the Covid-19 virus.
However, during the month of April, Cathay Pacific carried 22.404 passengers, which is a 63.2 percent increase when compared to the same month in the previous year. During the period, the carrier resumed operations to several cities in mainland China and Perth and Melbourne in Australia.
Cathay Pacific Group Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Ronald Lam told the media, “Our vaccine solution has gathered momentum, and we surpassed the milestone of shipping 15 million Covid-19 vaccines around the world in mid-April. We have also seen surges in demand for related medical and healthcare supplies, and we are focused on maximising our available capacity to facilitate the movement of these essential shipments.”
Cathay Pacific posted a net loss of HK$ 21.65 billion for 2020, a period they claimed to be the most challenging 12 months of the airline’s 70-year history. The Covid-19 pandemic brought unprecedented disruption to global air travel. Following which Cathay Pacific restructured the financial measure taken by the airline including laying off staff and cutting salaries.
Cathay Pacific only flies internationally and on the onset of the coronavirus outbreak subsequent country borders were closed and travel restrictions were imposed. In the first 6 months, Cathay Pacific witnessed a loss of $1.3 billion after which they flagged a substantial full-year loss.