How does it cut profits though? They've been flying the 744 for like, almost 20 years before the 777s started arriving. Cathay have been paying for the 747's fuel bills for like a decade or so, I doubt they have been loosing money all along. It's true they save money by operating 77Ws which doesn't consume that much fuel, but I'd expect them to only be able to save $$, instead of going to the extent in which they loose money by flying 747s.