Cathay Pacific Airways has released combined Cathay Pacific and Dragonair traffic figures for November 2012 that show an increase in passenger numbers alongside a drop in capacity. For the third month in a row, cargo and mail tonnage showed an increase compared to the same month in 2011, but was some way short of the tonnage achieved in November 2010.

Cathay Pacific and Dragonair carried a total of 2,361,137 passengers in November – an increase of 3.8% compared to the same month last year. The passenger load factor rose by 0.7 percentage points to 79.2%, while capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASKs), showed a 4.3% decrease. For the year to date, passenger numbers have risen by 5.2% compared to a capacity increase of 3.3%.

The two airlines carried 140,824 tonnes of cargo and mail last month, an increase of 6.3% compared to November 2011. The cargo and mail load factor fell by 1.4 percentage points to 63.9%. Capacity, measured in available cargo/mail tonne kilometres, rose by 5.1%, while cargo and mail tonne kilometres flown rose by 2.8%. For the year to date, tonnage has declined by 6.1% against a capacity drop of 3.5%.

Cathay Pacific General Manager Revenue Management James Tong said: “A combination of fewer flights and using more of the fuel-efficient, but smaller, Boeing 777-300ERs on long-haul routes brought down our overall capacity in November. However, we continued with our strategy to strengthen our regional network, adding a new Dragonair service to Kolkata. Passenger numbers were satisfactory in the Economy cabin on long-haul routes, but demand in the premium cabins continued to be weaker than expected, especially within the region. Yield remained under pressure in all classes.”

Cathay Pacific General Manager Cargo Sales & Marketing James Woodrow said: “The uptick in demand that began in late September continued through November, again driven by significant shipments of hi-tech consumer products out of key manufacturing centres such as Western/Central China and Vietnam. We operated close to a full freighter schedule throughout the month and mounted a number of charter flights and extra sectors. While we welcome the recent upturn in demand, we have not seen the kind of sustained year-end peak we saw in previous years and the market outlook continues to be uncertain, particularly from Asia to Europe.”

The full November figures are on the next page.