Cathay Pacific Plans Long-Term Fleet Growth While Nurturing New Routes

HONG KONG—Cathay Pacific is focused on maturing its new network routes while leveraging partnerships to access both established and emerging markets.

Beyond what CEO Ronald Lam calls the “best three years” in the airline’s history, the carrier is now evaluating a “substantial” long-haul and freighter fleet renewal and expansion under the second half of its 10-year plan, which runs over 2026-35.

Speaking at Routes World 2025, Lam says the group’s dual-brand strategy—encompassing the Cathay Pacific full-service network and its low-cost subsidiary HK Express—positions it to serve both mainland Chinese and international markets. He expresses optimism about HK Express’s short-haul expansion, which has recently diversified from a heavy focus on Japan to include China, Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia.

Long-haul growth will be tailored to the needs of the Hong Kong hub and mainland China, potentially involving expansion into Belt and Road Initiative markets such as Central Asia and the Middle East.

However, the carrier acknowledges that many of these new routes are not yet profitable; some are a contributing factor in HK Express’s recent weaker financial performance. Chief Commercial Officer Lavinia Lau says some routes require time to mature, a process that can take up to 18 months for long-haul destinations.

There have been positive surprises. The airline’s new service to Riyadh has seen strong demand, prompting Cathay to increase the frequency from 4X-weekly to daily flights starting Oct. 26 to accommodate both point-to-point and transfer traffic.

While there are no immediate plans for nonstop flights to Latin America or Central Asia, Lau says the airline will explore partnerships, using points like Urumqi, China, for Central Asian connections and Dallas for Latin American traffic.

On the fleet side, Lam says the next five years will be dominated by new deliveries, including the Boeing 777-9 in 2027, followed by Airbus A330neos and A350F freighters in 2028. The subsequent phase, from 2030–2035, will involve evaluating requirements for a second batch of regional widebody, narrowbody and freighter aircraft. This will also include the 14 additional 777-9s announced in August, which are scheduled for delivery within that timeframe, as well as potential option exercises.

Lam has ruled out acquiring regional aircraft, emphasizing that the carrier requires the economies of scale offered by larger jets to operate efficiently from slot-constrained Hong Kong.

According to Aviation Week Fleet Discovery, Cathay now has 40 active A330s aged between 10–24 years old and 48 777-300/300ER. In its backlog are 35 777-9s with seven options, and 30 A330neos.