iscover
By the end of 1988 Cathay operated a total of 14 Lockheed L.1011 Tristars, having added 4 additional aircraft to the trijet fleet in that year to accommodate the dramatic growth in its Asian 'domestic' network. An announcement as to the successor to the Tristar was due to be declared at presstime. (Rob Finlayson)
Cathay Pacific Soars Ahead
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Cathay Planning to Retain Mantle of World’s Most Profitable Airline
Cathay Pacific, the world’s most profitable airline on a per capita Revenue Passenger Kilometre basis, is aiming to retain this impressive mantle in the years ahead via new equipment, enhanced standards of service and a tapping of the vast and expansive Asian travel market.
Cathay has always been one of the world’s most efficient airlines. In its 42 year history it has endured just one year in which the balance sheet was coloured red. Its present era of growth is such that the Hong Kong based, but British owned carrier, will in 1988 have performed more than double the RPKs that it did just five years earlier. Ten years ago the carrier did not even operate one 747 and still relied upon the venerable 707 as its primary long haul jetliner whereas today CX operates an all wide bodied fleet of some 30 aircraft.
Like most of the carriers based in the Asia/Pacific rim, Cathay is booming with first half 1988 results indicating a 23% increase in operating profit with an increase in passengers uplifted of 20% against a capacity increase of 17%. Passenger revenue increased by a startling 33% while cargo followed in similar style with an increase of 25% for an overall turnover increase of some 31% over the same period the previous year. Furthermore, despite the 17% boost in capacity, load factor increased from an already extremely healthy 73. 6% to an impressive 74. 2%. How the US mega carriers must envy such a performance when they can barely get better than 60% on many of their domestic operations.
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