New fleet for Cathay Dragon

A new fleet of 32 Airbus A321neos is on the way to Cathay Pacific’s regional subsidiary Cathay Dragon after the parent company last week signed a memorandum of understanding for the purchase. The order is worth US$4.06bn at list prices.

The environmentally-friendly aircraft will partially replace older A320s and A321s and allow new destinations to be added to Cathay Dragon’s network and increase frequency on some of the most popular routes.

Cathay Pacific chief executive Rupert Hogg said Dragon, which has an all-Airbus fleet with 23 A320-family aircraft and 24 A330-300s, was seeking to expand its network in the region “to provide more travel choices and convenience to our customers”.

The acquisition is seen as part of a business revamp at Cathay, which earlier this year reported its first annual loss in eight years. Hogg took over as CEO on 1 May, replacing Ivan Chu, who became chairman of John Swire & Sons (China) Ltd.

The project is thought to include management changes, with some positions disappearing, with the airline said to have set a target of 30% savings in staff costs at the Hong Kong head office.

www.cathaypacific.com

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