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Opinion | Cathay can fly high again once it restores a sense of family
- The airline’s mass lay-offs led to staff shortages when it needed qualified personnel the most, and service suffered
- The Cathay brand will regain its global network if it commits to enhancing quality of service and rebuilding its sentimental connection to Hong Kong
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Expats arriving in Hong Kong for short-term work assignments or other temporary purposes tend to go through an interesting process if their stay becomes longer than originally intended. Gradually, their country of origin becomes “over there” and Hong Kong becomes home.
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What could be more natural when that happens than for Cathay Pacific to become their airline of choice? After all, they are Hongkongers now and Cathay is the recognised home carrier. People born here perhaps do not need to go through this process. Many may feel the carrier is closer to them culturally. They know how we like our noodles, you might say.
The Covid-19 outbreak had a devastating impact on most countries and airlines, as international air travel was severely curtailed. Hong Kong was hit particularly hard. Whereas airlines based in countries such as the United States or Japan could be bolstered by domestic demand, it is quasi-international or nothing for Hong Kong’s aviation sector as even flights to and from the rest of China were subject to immigration and health controls.
Hong Kong’s Covid-19 control regime was one of the world’s strictest, with quarantine on arrival up to 21 days at its height. We were also among the slowest locations to ease up. Whereas many places began moving to relax restrictions in early 2022, Hong Kong did not start lifting most controls until the end of that year and finally dropped its mandatory mask mandate in March 2023.
Different airlines responded differently to the situation according to their own experience, expectations and cultural norms. I have a friend working as a flight attendant for a Japanese airline who told me they remained on full basic pay throughout the Covid-19 saga but could not claim flight pay because the company had suspended the Hong Kong route. Singapore Airlines, a major competitor which is majority owned by government investment agencies, said it was cutting around 4,300 jobs.
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Cathay took a more pessimistic view. It suspended operations completely on some routes, and even those which were kept open substantially reduced frequency. Ticket prices increased as overheads had to be covered by a smaller number of passengers. But the main impact was on staff: large numbers of pilots and cabin crew were laid off and others quit as working conditions became less attractive.
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