Dark times for leading Asian airline

It is not that long ago that Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways was one of the leading global carriers and a figurehead in the Asian market. 

Today, Cathay Pacific announced that it is planning to downsize again, local media reported. 

The struggling carrier has established a voluntary redundancy scheme for front-line staff - including local flight attendants and pilots - to take redundancy with compensation of up to six months' salary. 

Cathay told staff that a forecast of “no discernible improvement” in the short- to medium-term had prompted the company to ask them if they would leave voluntarily. 

The airline said it would continue to operate a skeleton passenger flight schedule for “some considerable time”.

The voluntary redundancies are tied to the near-total collapse of the passenger flight market. 

"We expect that we will continue to operate a very limited schedule in the near term," said director of people (or maybe that should be director of getting rid of people) Patricia Hwang. 

"We must continue to manage our business prudently, balancing the need to manage costs and preserve cash with the need to prepare for the eventual recovery." 

Volunteers opting to leave would be paid between two and six months' salary depending on length of service.


The airline is already a much smaller business than before the pandemic, having slashed almost 6,000 jobs last year.

Cathay Pacific was saved last June by a bailout from the Government.