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Qatar Airways will sell its stake in Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways in a share buyback valued at $896 million, the companies announced, ending the Qatari carrier's eight-year involvement with the airline. The announcement came late Wednesday in a stock market filing by Cathay Pacific, which saw its shares gain 4.2% on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Thursday. Under the agreement, Qatar Airways will sell all of its holdings, which represent 9.57% of Cathay Pacific stock. The airline's other major shareholders are Swire Pacific and Air China. The plan is subject to shareholder approval. The buy-back reflects our strong confidence in the future of the Cathay Group and underscores our commitment to the development of the Hong Kong international aviation hub," Cathay Group chairman Patrick Healy said in a statement announcing the sale. Qatar Airways, a state-owned airline flying out of the sprawling Hamad International Airport in Doha, did not acknowledge the sale itself. Howeve
Cathay Pacific has placed 100 new generation aircraft as part of its HKD 100 billion (at current rate USD 12.86 billion) investment plan for the next five years, a senior official of the Hong Kong flag carrier has said. Rakesh Raicar, Cathay's Regional General Manager South Asia, Middle East, and Africa, said the airline expects 25 per cent growth in cargo this year from South India pinning hopes on exports of Apple products and pharma, among others. Raicar, in a press conference on Thursday, said the three cities - Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad constituted 43 per cent of the total over 1.30 lakh tonne of cargo it handled last year. "The total fleet size as of June 2024 was 178 (both passenger and cargo) with approximately 73 new passenger aircraft scheduled to join as of 30 June 2024. The 100 billion HK dollars (is being ) invested in products. Within that, a major chunk will go in terms of our fleet acquisition. And we've already placed an order of 100 new generation aircraft i
Seeking to provide an enhanced in-flight experience to its fliers, global airline Cathay Pacific will shortly launch retrofitted Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, which will include a new Business class -- Aria Suite, improved Premium Economy, and refreshed Economy class cabin. Unveiled at a recent function here, the retrofitted Boeing aircraft is configured in a three-class layout with a total of 361 seats, comprising 45 flat-bed Business, 48 Premium Economy, and 268 Economy seats. The new facility will be available on select routes of airlines from October itself and will be gradually expanded. "The customer experience is at the heart of the design and conception of the all-new Aria Suite. In addition to retaining some of the customers' favourite features of Cathay Pacific's existing Business class seats -- such as the reverse herringbone arrangement, a generous bed and ample storage -- Aria Suite features a range of innovations and enhancements to take the Business class experience to t
A Cathay Pacific jetliner aborted its takeoff at Hong Kong International Airport early Saturday, and 11 passengers were injured while evacuating the aircraft, the airline said. Flight CX880, bound for Los Angeles, returned to the gate after a technical issue caused the crew to abort the takeoff and a precautionary passenger evacuation was initiated, the airline said in a statement. It said those on board used five escape slides to exit the plane. Cathay Pacific gave no details on the problem. Public broadcaster RTHK reported one of the plane's tires had overheated, causing it to burst, citing police. The flight was carrying 293 passengers and 17 crew members. We understand that 11 passengers are being treated at the hospital with injuries sustained during the evacuation process, Cathay Pacific said. Our priority is to look after all affected passengers and crew. By 10:30 a.m., nine of the injured passengers had been discharged from the hospital, the airline said later. Using a ..
- Hong Kong airline Cathay Pacific Airways said on Wednesday that losses in the first half of the year narrowed as a relaxation in quarantine rules boosted passenger numbers. But it cautioned that quarantine restrictions on its crew were limiting the airline's ability to increase flight capacity. The company reported losses of about USD 5 billion Hong Kong dollars (USD 637 million) in the first six months, down from 7.57 billion Hong Kong dollars (USD 964.5 million) in the same period last year. Hong Kong relaxed strict quarantine rules from 14 to seven days in mandatory hotel quarantine earlier this year, and to just three days from Friday. It still remains one of the few places in the world, together with mainland China, to require mandatory quarantine for inbound travellers. Such measures have limited recovery for Cathay and the city's tourism industry, as travellers opt for other destinations that have opened up completely. Cathay's first-half revenue grew 17 per cent to 18.6