Staff reporter and Bloomberg
Cathay Pacific Airways (0293) may not be able to return to normal passenger capacity for at least another two years, its chief customer and commercial officer told the Financial Times.
Ronald Lam Siu-por estimated that passenger capacity could recover to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024 or early 2025.
Though airplane ticket orders have significantly rallied after the Hong Kong government further relaxed arrival restrictions, Lam said booked tickets to Hong Kong are much fewer, mainly due to the requirements of Covid test and the three-day medical surveillance.
Lam insisted that Hong Kong continues to be an international aviation hub with confidence in the city's advantages, though it has been behind many cities in opening up.
Meanwhile, the first commercial Boeing 737 Max flight appeared to have resumed flying into China for the first time in almost four years, in what would be a major breakthrough for the US best-selling jet.
A MIAT Mongolian Airlines flight operating a round-trip between Ulaanbaatar to Guangzhou landed in the southern Chinese city yesterday, according to FlightRadar24 data.
Mongolian Airlines has the flight scheduled and listed to go again, using the 737 Max, on October 17 and 24. Both trips are available for booking on their website.
"We continue to work with global regulators and our customers to safely return the 737 Max to service worldwide," Boeing said in an e-mail. Returning the 737 Max to the skies in China and resuming deliveries are critical steps toward helping rebuild Boeing's balance sheet, which was battered by the lengthy Max grounding and the pandemic.
The airline says inbound demand remains poor. Reuters
