Cathay Pacific Airways carried 1,031,287 passengers in August, 5.2% fewer than in the same month last year. This was still well above the 851,074 passengers carried in July, when operations were significantly impacted by Typhoon Utor and the pilot union`s industrial action. For the first eight months of the year, total passenger numbers have declined by 2% compared to the same period in 2000.

August saw continued weakness in cargo operations. A total of 53,942 tonnes of cargo was carried, a decline of 16.4% compared to the same month a year earlier. The cargo load factor was 63.9%, a decline of 5.5 percentage points. For the first eight months of the year, the amount of cargo carried has fallen by 9.1%.

Cathay Pacific`s General Manager Network Revenue Ian Shiu said: “During August we operated a full schedule as operations effectively returned to normal. At the same time however there was further evidence of weak traffic demand as a result of the global economic slowdown.”

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