Cathay Pacific Asia Miles - Cathay outlook weak as traffic slides

Cathay outlook weak as traffic slides

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=7&id=125430

Business fell sharply last month for Hong Kong-based carrier Cathay Pacific and the airline warned that the outlook is not promising.

Passenger numbers in September were down by just over 12 percent, year on year, and load factor dropped by 7.3 percent.

http://news.airwise.com/stories/2001/10/1003751910.html

Should I worry about an award ticket to AKL for Jan? Chose to use miles for a CX F ticket instead of using cruise line's coach air. This was booked in Aug. Does AA have an obligation to get me there and back even if they can't do it on a partner? If this falls through at the last minute and I'm not there when the ship sails I'm lose my money.

[This message has been edited by flowerchild (edited 10-23-2001).]

I wouldn't worry about your award ticket, flowerchild. Even if they were to go bust (AA or CX or both) it would be some time until it happens, definately after January.

And I believe either AA will provide an alternative routing or refund your miles, so I think you are pretty safe on both grounds.

Singapore Airlines' passenger load factor, a key measure of airline performance, has fallen nearly 19 per cent since the terrorist attacks in the United States.
The airline met analysts yesterday to explain its worse-than-expected 88.2 per cent drop in six-month net profit.


SIA acknowledged a steep decline in passenger traffic following the September 11 terrorist attacks, although cargo numbers had held up in comparison, analysts said.

In the period following the attacks to October 16, passenger load factors - the percentage of airline seats sold - fell to 63.1 per cent, down from 77.8 per cent during the same period last year.

"That is a huge erosion in load factor," Philip Wickham, a Hong Kong-based regional aviation analyst for ING Barings, said.

The airline said interim net profit to September fell to S$134.8 million (about HK$575.6 million). The decline in recurring profit was a much lower 25 per cent, as SIA had booked exceptional profits from several asset sales last year.

SIA chief executive and deputy chairman Cheong Choong Kong said: "SIA is also affected by the problems and uncertainties afflicting the entire airline industry post-September 11, but we have unique strengths that will stand us in good stead as we strive to maintain our loss-free record."

SIA's fall in passenger numbers will not bode well for Cathay Pacific Airways, which does not report its interim profit until February.

"The two airlines are very similar in scale and scope in Asia, so a huge drop-off in traffic for SIA will equate to a similar experience for Cathay," another analyst said at the meeting.

Kevin O'Connor, an analyst with Deutsche Bank in Hong Kong, said SIA's result was "at the bottom end of expectations".

"The quality of the result was certainly worse than expected," he said.

To battle falling passenger demand, SIA said it would reduce capacity between January and March by between 7 and 10 per cent, particularly on services to North America and Japan.

The airline announced earlier this month that it was suspending services to three destinations, including Kota Kinabalu, Kuching and Macau, because of low demand.

Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd (0293) Chairman James Hughes-Hallett said on Tuesday the company has no plans to lay off staff nor does it expect to delay any aircraft deliveries to weather the downturn in Asia's travel industry.

http://money.iwon.com/jsp/nw/nwdt_rt.jsp?section=news&news_id=reu-hkg16520&feed=reu&date=20011029&cat=INDUSTRY

Cathay Pacific Reports Reduced October Numbers

Hong Kong based Cathay Pacific Airways says the number of passengers it carried in October fell to 834,086, 16.6 percent less than the same month last year.

The amount of cargo carried was 67,258 tonnes, 9.2 percent lower than the same month last year.

Overall, the volume of passenger traffic, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs), was 18 percent lower than the comparable figure in October 2000.

http://news.airwise.com/stories/2001/11/1006168561.html

I am doing my part. Flying this weekend to Dubai. Could travel either direction, but was enticed by the PDA offer and the bonus miles. CX adds about 10 hours enroute. I have friends who have offered to take me to Kowloon after I shower up at the Wing, so it should be O.K.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.