Cathay Pacific passenger traffic plunges 99% in January 2021

Revenue passenger kilometres fell 98.7% YoY over the same period.

Cathay Pacific carried a total of 30,410 passengers in January 2021, a 99% drop compared to January 2020, the company announced.

Cathay Pacific Group chief customer and commercial officer Ronald Lam mentioned that the airline only carried an average of 981 passengers a day during the period, whilst load factor was the lowest on record at 13.3%.

The slump reflects the airline’s substantial capacity reductions in response to significantly reduced demand, travel restrictions, and quarantine requirements in place amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the airline, the period’s revenue passenger kilometres fell 98.7% YoY.

“2021 has already got off to a difficult start. Many of the challenges of 2020 continued into January whilst a number of new ones have also emerged, most notably new COVID-19 strains and more severe lockdowns in some of our key markets,” Lam said.