Cathay Pacific has released its December 2024 traffic report, showing remarkable post-pandemic performance across the Cathay Group.
The combined passenger operations of Cathay Pacific and HK Express achieved a significant milestone. The Group’s two airlines carried more than 28 million passengers throughout 2024. This represented a substantial 30.7% increase from the previous year.
The cargo division demonstrated equally impressive growth, with Cathay Cargo handling 1.5 million tonnes of cargo. This signified an 11% improvement over 2023’s figures.

December 2024 Performance
Passenger Division
December 2024 proved particularly successful, with Cathay Pacific transporting 2,248,950 passengers, a notable 26.4% increase compared to December 2023.
The airline’s operational metrics showed strong improvement across the board, with revenue passenger kilometres growing by 27.9%.
The passenger load factor reached an impressive 84.8%, climbing 3.6 percentage points. Meanwhile, available seat kilometres expanded by 22.5% year on year, indicating significant capacity growth.
Premium Cabin Demand
The airline’s premium cabins experienced particularly strong demand from business travelers in the lead-up to year-end, indicating a robust recovery in the corporate travel sector.
The successful reintroduction of thrice-weekly flights to Cairns has expanded the airline’s Australian network, while the carrier continued to leverage its strategic position to capture transit traffic between mainland China and global destinations.

Cargo Division
The cargo sector maintained its upward trajectory, with December volumes reaching 143,564 tonnes. This represented an 11.7% increase from the previous year.
Cargo revenue tonne kilometres rose by 6.5%, and the cargo load factor improved to 61.4%. Load factor showed a 0.6 percentage point increase. Available cargo tonne kilometres grew by 5.5%, reflecting the airline’s expanded cargo capacity and operational efficiency.
Highest Monthly Tonnage
In the cargo segment, December’s performance represented the pinnacle of 2024’s operations, posting the year’s highest monthly tonnage. E-commerce shipments from Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area maintained strong momentum, particularly during the festive season.
The airline also saw substantial demand for perishables and seasonal produce from South West Pacific and the Americas to Hong Kong and other Asian destinations. The Cathay Expert solution experienced increased utilization, especially in the transportation of machinery and engines from North Asia.
Chief Customer and Commercial Officer Lavinia Lau emphasized several notable achievements across both passenger and cargo operations.
“The December holiday period marked a significant milestone in our recovery journey, with our combined carriers serving over 100,000 passengers daily on eight separate occasions – our highest since rebuilding began,” Lau explained.
“This achievement demonstrates the strong return of travel demand and our ability to meet it effectively.”

Two-Year Recovery Plan Complete
Having successfully completed its comprehensive two-year recovery plan, the Cathay Group has now restored 100% of its pre-pandemic flight capacity as of January 2025.
The airline’s ambitious expansion strategy includes the introduction of several new direct services, including the highly anticipated Hong Kong-Rome route scheduled to launch in June.
The Group has already announced six new destinations for 2025, advancing toward its strategic goal of serving 100 destinations worldwide within the year.

Looking Ahead
Looking ahead, the airline anticipates a strong performance during the Lunar New Year period, with booking patterns showing accelerated growth.
Following the holiday peak, local leisure travel is expected to moderate, while transit passenger numbers are projected to remain strong, supported by the airline’s extensive global network.
Cargo operations are forecasted to experience a temporary softening in early January before regaining momentum as the Lunar New Year holiday approaches, reflecting typical seasonal patterns in the air freight industry.

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