Cathay Group carried more passengers and cargo year-on-year while continuing to expand the Group’s global network.
Lavinia Lau said: “September typically marks a quieter period for our travel business following the end of the summer travel peak, though we continued to see year-on-year growth in the number of passengers carried as a Group.
“Cathay Pacific and HK Express carried a combined total of over 2.7 million passengers, 20% more than September 2024.
“Meanwhile, heading into the traditional air cargo peak season in September, Cathay Cargo carried over 130,000 tonnes of cargo, slightly higher than the same period last year.
“In September, Cathay Pacific also announced non-stop passenger flights between Hong Kong and Changsha starting 4 November 2025, bringing the Group’s overall Chinese Mainland network to 24 destinations.
“Cathay Pacific is also increasing frequencies on other Chinese Mainland routes including Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Shanghai this coming winter season, and as a Group we will be operating more than 330 return flights per week between Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland.”
Cathay Pacific carried 21% more passengers in September 2025 compared with September 2024, while Available Seat Kilometres (ASKs) increased by 20%.
In the first nine months of 2025, the number of passengers carried increased by 27% compared with the same period for 2024.
Lavinia said: “As the busy summer travel months drew to a close, we saw a shift to the outbound student travel peak in September ahead of the new school year, with our outbound flights from Hong Kong to the United Kingdom in particular achieving high load factors.
“Meanwhile, travel demand for Japan also rebounded strongly in September, with passenger volumes surpassing those of the same period last year supported by connecting traffic from our network.
“In addition, the load factor for our premium cabins reached the highest of any month so far this year, driven by various exhibitions in Hong Kong and fashion weeks in Milan and Paris.
“We also saw robust traffic from the Chinese Mainland to Hong Kong and Southeast Asia prior to the National Day holiday period.
“Looking ahead, demand is building up for Christmas and the year-end holidays. We will continue to add more flights and destinations in the coming months to provide our customers with greater choice and connectivity.”
HK Express carried close to 530,000 passengers in September 2025, an increase of 16% year on year, while Available Seat Kilometres (ASKs) grew by 11%. In the first nine months of 2025, the number of passengers carried increased by 31% compared with the same period for 2024.
Lavinia said: “For HK Express, September was a quieter month after the summer peak, although we observed a stronger pick-up in demand towards the end of the month coinciding with the National Day holiday.
“On the airline’s Japan routes, although passengers carried surpassed that of the same period last year, demand has not yet caught up with capacity growth.”
