Cathay axes flights as Mideast tumult takes its toll

Cathay Pacific Airways on Saturday said it will be cancelling around two percent of passenger flights from May 16 to June 30 to alleviate pressure brought by increasing operational costs from the Middle East conflict. Scores of flights will be affected, mainly regional services along with some to and from Australia, South Asia and South Africa. All flights to Dubai and Riyadh will also be further suspended until June 30. The airline's budget arm, HK Express, will also cancel about six percent of its flights between May 11 and June 30. Cathay said affected passengers will be notified of their new flights – which would be departing within 24 hours of their original itineraries – on or before April 13. It added that it plans to operate all of its scheduled flights from July onwards but pointed out they will be subject to latest developments in the Middle East and trends in fuel prices. In a statement, the airline said fuel prices have been increasing since March in the immediate aftermath of the start of US-Israel attacks on Iran, bringing heavy cost pressures on airlines globally. "In the past month, we have pursued every suitable means to keep our flights operating as normal," the carrier said. "This includes adjusting the fuel surcharges in an attempt to mitigate the surge in jet fuel prices. Despite our best efforts, the measures we have taken to mitigate the heightened fuel costs have not been enough." Cathay Pacific said it would do its best to minimise the impact on passengers and apologised for the inconvenience caused. It added that it would continue to react to the situation in a flexible manner that safeguards the interests of customers, business partners and the SAR as an international aviation hub. Edited by Thomas McAlinden