Cathay Cargo ops get boost from crew quarantine review

Cathay Pacific Cargo's operations have been given a boost following a review of crew quarantine measures by the Hong Kong government and changes in requirements for fully-vaccinated crews and for those visiting a handful of low-risk countries.

“This has allowed us to gradually restore our capacity through increased freighter frequencies, as well as enabling us to add flexibility through our cargo-only passenger flights.Over the course of the coming month we expect to ramp up towards full freighter capacity, ensuring we are more able to meet the current firm market demand,” general manager, Cargo Service Delivery, Frosti Lau, explained.

“And our readiness to operate freighters and cargo-only passenger flights applies especially to India, following the worrying news of the dramatic increase in COVID-19 infections. We have already carried relief supplies, and stand ready and able to deliver more medical equipment on our freighters and cargo-only passenger flights as required,” he added.

Meanwhile, Airport Authority Hong Kong today released Hong Kong International Airport’s (HKIA) traffic statistics for April 2021. During the month, cargo throughput saw a year-on-year increase of 15.5% to 389,000 tonnes.

The surge in cargo volume last month was mainly attributed to a double-digit growth in imports. Despite a decline in transshipments due to a shortage of belly capacity on passenger flights, overall cargo throughput saw an increase during the month, most significantly in traffic to and from Southeast Asia and India.

For the first four months of the year, cargo handled at HKIA  rose 13.6% to 1.5 million tonnes.

On a 12-month rolling basis, cargo throughput totalled 4.6 million tonnes, an increase of 0.3% year on year.