I feel like a sticky/FAQ linking all the different threads related to this topic will be useful to alert casual people as to why they should not fly CX / fly via HKG for the foreseeable future due to HKSAR zero covid policy.

I definitely benefited from the chatters and horror stories you all posted. I'm flying back to SE Asia for CNY this weekend for the first time in 2 yrs. When I started to look for flights in Sep naturally I was considering CX cause 1) I need a one stop flight since stopping over here and there isn't an option with covid and 2) I like flying CX for the right price (my last tpac flight was actually CX852 Feb 2020). CX price was competitive (around USD 4.4K) but then I read all the horror stories about cancellation, attempt to rebook, etc and decided to go with the pricier JL instead. I'm glad I did. With JL I only had 1 change so far (AA changed the timing of the US domestic connection ex-EWR that made the flight not viable so JL agreed to put me on the JFK flight instead).

People who visit this forum regularly know but those who come here from other forums may not realize the underlying issue is HK govt policy meaning sudden bans and/or cancellation on flights via HKG should be expected for the foreseeable future (until China changes his mind). That may help them in planning their trips, etc.