Hong Kong Airlines has announced new non-stop service to Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport (SVO), with the new service slated to commence on June 23. The four times weekly service will be operated by A330-200 aircraft and it marks the airline's first scheduled non-stop flight to Europe.
However, the carrier will face competition from Russian national carrier Aeroflot, which currently operates a five times weekly service from its main SVO hub and has for a number of years been the only carrier operating Moscow-Hong Kong on a scheduled basis.
The announcement follows Cathay Pacific's plans to operate services from Hong Kong to Moscow. The oneworld carrier has applied for regulatory approval to operate a three- times weekly service using A340-300 aircraft.
Meanwhile in 2008, Moscow-based carrier Transaero operated charters from Moscow DME to Sydney with a stopover in Hong Kong. The service was chartered by Russian tour operator Capitol Tours, which cited strong demand on Hong Kong as the reason for selecting it as its choice of stopover.
Traffic type
As well as leisure demand, Hong Kong's position as a financial centre coupled with the growing Russian economy points to potentially strong business demand on the route. Plus, demand is expected to increase given that Russian nationals are no longer required to obtain a visa to enter Hong Kong.
Over 40,000 passengers flew from Hong to Moscow SVO between January 2009 and January 2010, both non-stop and indirectly, according to IATA BSP Data Airport IS. Aeroflot carried over 81% of these passengers. Nearly 15% were premium passengers with an average one-way fare of nearly US$2,000.
Hong Kong Airlines' Strategy in Moscow
Hong Kong Airlines will be able to offer connectivity into China from Moscow, however with it and its regional carrier, Hong Kong Express, focusing on point-to-point traffic and having a limited route network, it won't be able to create a hub in Hong Kong.
There are currently four Chinese carriers operating into Moscow - Air China, China Southern, China Eastern and Hainan Airlines. Cathay Pacific offers a different alliance option and wider connectivity into China and South East Asia through its subsidiary Dragonair. Therefore, Hong Kong Airlines may well focus its strategy on serving the point-to-point market and stimulating new traffic between the city pairs.
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