A traveler surfs her computer near aircraft operated by Cathay Pacific Airways taxing at the departures hall at Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong on Feb 10, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

HONG KONG – Cathay Pacific Airways has canceled further flights until the end of February to ensure that all passengers who have booked flights during the Lunar New Year peak travel season can proceed as planned.

The Hong Kong flag carrier said on Wednesday that it has also set up a task force to identify and resolve the underlying issues concerning flight cancellations.

More than 96 percent of the airline’s customers affected between Jan 1 and Feb 29 have been given alternative flight options within 24 hours of their original departure time, while 93 percent have been offered seats on other Cathay Pacific flight services. The remaining passengers have been guaranteed seats by Cathay Pacific’s airline partners, according to the carrier statement on Wednesday.

The airline apologized again for having underestimated the number of reserve pilots required.

I would like to extend our sincere apologies to our customers affected by recent travel disruptions. Over the Christmas and New Year holidays, we had underestimated the number of reserve pilots we would need. 

Alex McGowan, Cathay Pacific’s chief operations and service delivery officer

On Sunday, the carrier said in a statement that it plans to cut 12 flights per day on average for the rest of January until February, focusing on routes with multiple daily flights where possible, to ensure normal operations during the Lunar New Year travel rush. 

“I would like to extend our sincere apologies to our customers affected by recent travel disruptions,” said Alex McGowan, Cathay Pacific’s chief operations and service delivery officer. “Over the Christmas and New Year holidays, we had underestimated the number of reserve pilots we would need.

“Given that our January pilot rosters had been set in mid-December, the lack of adequate reserve pilots has continued into January. To stabilize operations, we have to scrap further flights in the first two weeks of January. Cancellations peaked at 27 flights (or 14 flight pairs) on Jan 7, and will be fewer over subsequent weeks,” McGowan said.

ALSO READ: CE: Cathay should urgently resolve flight cancellations problem

He reiterated that the carrier has fixed all planned cancellations on an average of 12 flights daily through this month and February, and affected customers have been notified of alternative arrangements.

“A disruption on such a scale is far below the standard our customers can expect, and far below the standard to which we hold ourselves. I am leading a task force to ensure that we identify and resolve the underlying issues. We will ensure we can improve as a result, and deliver the high-quality services and reliability Hong Kong deserves,” McGowan said.

Legislative Council Transport Panel Chairman Ben Chan Hang-pan said the flight cancellation disruptions had had an impact on Cathay Pacific's reputation and on Hong Kong’s aviation industry, and he hoped that similar problems would not occur again.

“I am concerned how Cathay Pacific, in addition to investigating the incident, can avoid further flight cancellations in the short, medium and long term. I believe the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region can coordinate other airlines to cooperate with Cathay Pacific to increase the number of flights when necessary,” Chan said.

READ MORE: HK transport chief urges Cathay to explain flight cancellations

The LegCo transport panel chairman said he believes that financial problems would not be a major issue and that the airline could be more aggressive in recruitment and making other arrangements.

The Hong Kong Aircrew Officer Association, representing Cathay Pacific pilots based in Hong Kong, urged the airline to improve its job offerings to pilots and to rehire laid-off pilots.

In a statement on Tuesday, the AOA described the management’s decisions to slash 1,000 pilot positions during the COVID-19 pandemic and terminate subsidiary mainland-focused regional carrier Cathay Dragon as disastrous. A further 1,000 pilots resigned following the lay-offs, bringing the total number of pilot lay-offs and resignations to about half of Cathay Pacific’s pilot manpower.

Expressing deep concern about the flight cancellations and the carrier’s apparent lack of capacity to cope with service demands, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said on Tuesday: “Hong Kong has the mission of ensuring the city will be a strong aviation hub in this region, so the whole aviation capacity is important.”

ALSO READ: HK airport passenger volume up over two-fold to 3.8m in Nov

On Tuesday, the management of the Civil Aviation Department met Cathay Pacific Airways officials on Tuesday to reiterate the department’s concern over the Hong Kong flag carrier’s recent slew of flight cancellations

On Tuesday, the management of the Civil Aviation Department met Cathay Pacific Airways officials on Tuesday to reiterate the department’s concern over the Hong Kong flag carrier’s recent slew of flight cancellations.

The department requested the airline to properly manage its deployment of manpower and other resources to ensure the stable provision of reliable flight services to passengers, especially for meeting the travel demand during the coming Chinese New Year peak season.

“It was extremely undesirable for the CPA canceling a number of flights for consecutive days and in the remainder of January and February. This also falls short of the expectation of both the government and the public,” the government said in a statement on Tuesday evening.

The Civil Aviation Department also asked Cathay Pacific to submit a report by the end of the month to explain the cause of the incident and the approach to its flight arrangements in order to prevent a recurrence of similar incidents.

Regarding the current flight arrangement situation, the department again urged the airline to explain clearly to the affected passengers the arrangements after flight consolidation – such as refunds or rescheduling – as soon as possible to minimize the inconvenience caused to passengers.

Cathay Pacific is responsible for providing reliable services to passengers, the department stressed, adding that it will continue to closely monitor the measures adopted by Cathay Pacific, and take appropriate follow-up action upon studying the report in detail.