It might be the year of the pig for China, which recently celebrated the start of its New Year, but for Cathay Pacific, 2007 marks the year of the dragon.
In December, the 60-year-old airline purchased fellow established Hong Kong-based carrier, Dragonair, opening up a raft of opportunities to link the Gulf with China and several key destinations across the Asia Pacific region.
“We believe that from here (the Gulf), via Hong Kong, our business to China will double over the next year; and that’s really just from Dubai,” explained James Evans, Cathay Pacific’s country manager, UAE & Oman.
“Not only is China opening up as a business and leisure destination, but Dubai also has a lot of appeal to people living in Mainland China.”
He emphasised that Dragonair had “a very strong brand in China” and that his challenge was to “raise consumer awareness of Cathay Pacific’s presence here in the Gulf, together with Dragonair’s strength in China”, promoting the combination of the two via the Hong Kong hub.
Providing convenient flight times from the Gulf to Hong Kong and fast connectivity to China was paramount to staving off competition from rival carriers, he added.
Already the carrier has instated double daily flights from Dubai-Hong Kong (as of October 29), 10 of which are non-stop, compared to 13 weekly beforehand. Three of these 14 flights also operate between Dubai and Bahrain. There are also plans to increase the frequency of the Riyadh-Hong Kong service, pending KSA government approval.
In terms of connectivity, Dragonair flies to 30 destinations, 21 of which are in Mainland China, with flights to Shanghai and Beijing amounting to 119 weekly and 115 weekly respectively. The airline recently increased frequencies to 11 Mainland China destinations (Chengdu, Chongqing, Guilin, Hangzhou, Kunming, Nanjing, Qingtao, Xian, Kaohsiung and Wuhan) and two non-Mainland cities (Sanya and Kota Kinabalu), for its summer schedule, effective until October 27.
Dragonair also recently commenced a daily service to Phuket in Thailand, a three times weekly service to Busan in South Korea, and upped its frequencies to the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, from five times weekly to daily. The Phuket route provides a viable option for agents putting together a package for clients holidaying in Thailand this summer.
Although the integration of Cathay Pacific and Dragonair is “work in progress”, according to Evans, the two carriers have already applied codeshare status to five routes – Shanghai, Beijing, Xiamen, Tokyo and Kota Kinabalu. Flights to these destinations carry both the “CX” (Cathay Pacific) and “KA” (Dragonair) codes.
“We have also reduced the connection times from 60 minutes to 50 minutes on some routes (from the Middle East via Hong Kong to China),” Evans added.
There will no doubt be further synergies when Dragonair joins Cathay Pacific and other key international airlines such as British Airways, Qantas and American Airlines as a oneworld alliance member during the first half of this year.
Cathay Pacific is also planning a series of fam trips to China via Hong Kong in a bid to promote the twin-hub idea and Dragonair’s connections to local travel agents and tour operators planning leisure, business and MICE travel.
The airline’s dedicated travel agent web site,
www.cxagents.com
, which is used by 650 registered agencies and nearly 2100 agency staff in the UAE and Oman, has also been updated to include Dragonair information in addition to fact sheets, current promotions and FAQs.
Looking ahead, Cathay Pacific, which has operated services to the Middle East for more than 30 years, is keen to tap into the lucrative business travel market, noting that in the past few years, the airline has witnessed a 20% increase in business class travel out of its Middle East routes, compared to 10% for economy class travel.
“It just goes to show the robustness of the market and the need to offer direct flights and convenience to passengers,” said Evans.
Cathay Pacific
Background:
established in 1946, headquartered in Hong Kong and owned by the Swire Group.
Fleet:
102 plus 32 orders.
Destinations:
102, including Dubai and Bahrain.
Figures:
carried 16,727,757 passengers in 2006 – up 8.4% on the previous year and ahead of a cumulative passenger capacity increase for the year of 7.7%. The load factor for the year was 79.9%. The amount of freight carried increased 7.2% to 1,198,703 tonnes.
Freight news:
from February 1, Cathay will add 11 extra freighter flights each week to three major cities in Europe – Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Manchester – services formerly operated by Dragonair.
E-ticket update:
in December 2006, 92% of Cathay Pacific tickets issued in the UAE were e-tickets, compared to 45% in January 2006.
Plans for 2007:
promote direct services to Hong Kong and connectivity to China, Asia Pacific and US West Coast; roll out new business class cabin concept on long haul fleet; and continue integration strategy with Dragonair.
Dragonair
Background:
a Hong Kong-based international airline established in 1985. In December 2006, the carrier became a wholly owned subsidiary of Cathay Pacific Airways.
Fleet:
13 A330-300s; six A321s, nine A320s; and eight freighters.
Destinations:
30 destinations across the Asia-Pacific region including 21 in Mainland China. The airline operates 119 and 115 flights weekly to Shanghai and Beijing respectively.
New routes:
a three times weekly service to Busan in South Korea started on December 19 and a daily service to Phuket commenced on December 15.
Figures:
the airline carried 5,568,508 passengers in 2006, up 8.3% on 2005.
Plans for 2007:
focusing on more routes and frequencies to destinations in Mainland China, and joining the oneworld alliance.
For more information:
www.dragonair.com or contact nearest Cathay Pacific office.
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