by Suman Gupta
Cathay Pacific Airways today released combined Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon traffic figures for April 2017 that show an increase in both the number of passengers carried and the volume of cargo and mail uplifted compared to the same month in 2016. Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dra
gon carried a total of 3,003,972 passengers last month – an increase of 3.2% compared to April 2016. The passenger load factor grew by 1.5 percentage points to 86.4%, while capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASKs), increased by 4.8%. In the first four months of 2017, the number of passenger carried declined by 0.1% while capacity rose by 0.9%.
The two airline s carried 163,473 tonnes of cargo and mail last month, an increase of 10.7% compared to the same month last year. The cargo and mail load factor rose by 2.2 percentage points to 65.7%. Capacity, measured in available cargo/mail tonne kilometres, was up by 2.6% while cargo and mail revenue tonne kilometres (RTKs) increased by 6.2%. In the first four months of 2017, the tonnage rose by 11.2% against a 1.9% increase in capacity and an 8.6% increase in RTKs.
Cathay Pacific General Manager Revenue Management Patricia Hwang said: “Passenger numbers in April were boosted by strong Easter holiday traffic out of Hong Kong. Volumes rose ahead of the increase in capacity, which is highlighted by a rise in the load factor. Overall, demand for regional travel remained strong throughout the month. Our Tel Aviv route, which we launched in March, has got off to a good start and has been very well received by our customers. However, yield continues to be affected by intense competition in the market.”
Cathay Pacific General Manager Cargo Sales & Marketing Mark Sutch said: “Our cargo business continued to show encouraging year-on-year tonnage growth. Demand from Hong Kong and key Asian markets to North America, Europe and India remained buoyant. Intra-Asia movement was boosted by strong e-Commerce traffic as well as capacity reduction in the market. Yield has continued its upward trend. We recently announced an agreement with Atlas Air Worldwide to wet-lease two Boeing 747-8 Freighters, which will supplement capacity on our existing network. This will enable us to provide our customers with increased options and services from June, when most market indicators are suggesting a solid year for air cargo.”
CATHAY PACIFIC / CATHAY DRAGON COMBINED TRAFFIC |
APR | % Change | Cumulative | %
Change |
| 2017 | VS APR 16
|
APR 2017
|
YTD
|
|
| RPK (000) | ||||
| – Mainland China | 762,272 | -3.4% | 2,967,232 | -1.3% |
| – North East Asia | 1,415,497 | 7.4% | 5,394,739 | 3.7% |
| – South East Asia | 1,528,052 | -0.3% | 5,928,182 | -2.5% |
| – India, Middle East, Pakistan & Sri Lanka | 596,355 | -3.6% | 2,342,579 | -7.6% |
| – South West Pacific & South Africa | 1,508,530 | 5.7% | 6,047,888 | -1.1% |
| – North America | 2,839,164 | 8.2% | 10,828,707 | -0.2% |
| – Europe | 2,033,502 | 19.1% | 7,888,787 | 12.4% |
| RPK Total (000) | 10,683,372 | 6.6% | 41,398,114 | 1.4% |
| Passengers carried | 3,003,972 | 3.2% | 11,503,528 | -0.1% |
| Cargo and mail revenue tonne km (000) | 907,291 | 6.2% | 3,562,003 | 8.6% |
| Cargo and mail carried (000kg) | 163,473 | 10.7% | 633,468 | 11.2% |
| Number of flights | 6,678 | 3.1% | 26,326 | 0.1% |
CATHAY PACIFIC / CATHAY DRAGON COMBINED CAPACITY |
APR | % Change | Cumulative | %
Change |
| 2017 | VS APR 16
|
APR 2017 | YTD
|
|
| ASK (000) | ||||
| – Mainland China | 990,524 | 3.0% | 3,924,991 | 3.1% |
| – North East Asia | 1,638,183 | 2.5% | 6,459,294 | -0.7% |
| – South East Asia | 1,736,083 | -1.4% | 6,949,772 | -2.4% |
| – India, Middle East, Pakistan & Sri Lanka | 687,013 | -8.0% | 2,831,122 | -10.5% |
| – South West Pacific & South Africa | 1,655,427 | 4.7% | 6,910,597 | 1.8% |
| – North America | 3,353,475 | 8.1% | 12,868,794 | 0.0% |
| – Europe | 2,307,573 | 12.8% | 8,870,067 | 9.0% |
| ASK Total (000) | 12,368,278 | 4.8% | 48,814,637 | 0.9% |
| Passenger load factor | 86.4% | 1.5pt | 84.8% | 0.5pt |
| Available cargo/mail tonne km (000) | 1,380,177 | 2.6% | 5,424,717 | 1.9% |
| Cargo and mail load factor | 65.7% | 2.2pt | 65.7% | 4.0pt |
| ATK (000) | 2,556,144 | 3.6% | 10,066,212 | 1.4% |
About Cathay Pacific Airways : Cathay Pacific Airways is an award-winning Hong Kong-based airline offering scheduled passenger and cargo services to more than 174 destinations in 43 countries and territories around the world. Cathay Pacific Airways and Cathay Dragon currently operate 48 weekly departures from 6 cities in India to Hong Kong. Cathay Pacific operates 10 flights a week from Mumbai, 14 flights from Delhi, daily flights from Chennai and 4 weekly flights from Hyderabad. Whereas sister airline Cathay Dragon operates daily flights from Bengaluru and 6 weekly flights from Kolkata. Cathay Pacific Cargo is also one of the biggest air cargo operators in India with 25 scheduled freighter services to and from Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
