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Cathay Pacific
Hong KongTransport

Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific delays aircraft deliveries, slowing cash burn amid Covid-19 travails

  • The arrival window for 12 new long-haul Airbus aircraft will be stretched by two years, to 2023, while a similar deal is being discussed with Boeing
  • The city’s de facto flag carrier had been losing HK$3 billion a month amid a near-total collapse of passenger flights

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Largely grounded by Covid-19, Cathay Pacific is hoping to save cash in the short to medium term by delaying delivery of plane shipments from Airbus and Boeing. Photo: Sam Tsang
Danny Lee
Cathay Pacific is burning about half as much cash, HK$1.5 billion (US$194 million) a month, as it did when the Covid-19 pandemic first hit the industry, the airline said on Wednesday, pointing to a deal with Airbus to delay aircraft deliveries and talks with Boeing to do the same.
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The recently bailed-out airline also said it was now servicing far fewer customer refunds, and expected its new cash burn rate to remain stable while providing a skeleton flight schedule.

Hong Kong’s flag carrier last week projected it would lose HK$9.9 billion in the first six months of the year as a direct result of the pandemic crippling air travel worldwide.

Cathay is operating a skeleton flight schedule amid the near-total collapse of passenger flights during the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: Reuters
Cathay is operating a skeleton flight schedule amid the near-total collapse of passenger flights during the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: Reuters

In the latest cost-saving measure, Cathay said it would stagger the remaining 12 deliveries of the long-haul A350 aircraft between now and 2023. The planes were originally to have been delivered before the end of 2021.

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Similarly, the airline will stretch its order of 32 new single-aisle A321neo for Cathay Dragon and HK Express until 2025. Both adjustments give it an extra two years to take the aircraft ordered.

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