A Cathay Pacific Airways passenger plane arrives at the reopened Changi International Airport Terminal 4 in Singapore on Sept 13, 2022, following its closure for more than two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (ROSLAN RAHMAN / AFP)

HONG KONG – Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd on Friday said it plans to add more than 200 pairs of passenger flights in October to both regional and long-haul destinations.

The announcement came after the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government said to scrap its COVID-19 hotel quarantine policy for all arrivals from Sept 26.

READ MORE: Cathay Pacific Airways raises passenger capacity forecast

"While we will continue to add back more flights as quickly as is feasible, it will take time to rebuild our capacity gradually," Cathay said in a statement.

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Hong Kong logged 5,387 new COVID-19 cases on Friday and 12 related deaths, as the daily caseload decreased from the previous weeks.