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Cathay Cargo is looking forward to growing its capacity with Airbus A350 freighters as well as developing its perishables business.
The Hong Kong-based cargo arm of Cathay Pacific benefits from ample belly capacity in its fleet, with more passenger aircraft due to arrive this year, but has more limited freighter capacity. Of 179 own-controlled aircraft in total, 20 are freighters, all Boeing 747Fs.
Therefore, the additional capacity from the six A350Fs ordered from Airbus in December 2023, alongside rights for 20 more units, will provide vital support on busy routes out of Hong Kong, explains James Evans, general manager, Cargo Commercial Cathay Cargo.
“We’ve got huge capacity in our bellies, but we’ve only got 20 freighters,” points out Evans.
The A350F was a logical choice for Cathay. The carrier already has 47 A350s of the passenger type.
The arrival of the A350Fs will be a welcome step up in terms of modernisation.
Cathay’s six 747-400ERFs are all owned and have an average age of 14.5 years, while its 747-8Fs have an average age of 10.4 years.
The 747-400s will be nearing 20 years of age when deliveries of the A350Fs, already pushed back, are due to start.
The A350Fs will offer a payload capacity of up to 111 tonnes and a range of 4,700 nautical miles, as well as up to 40% lower fuel burn and CO₂ emissions compared to older in-service freighters.
However, Cathay’s first freighter variant won’t be delivered until at least 2028, with deliveries due to continue through 2029.
“In terms of our freighter capacity, we’ve got a steady state, or a pinch from now until deliveries begin,” says Evans.
While there has been speculation about a widebody cargo capacity shortage stemming from supply chain parts shortages, feedstock shortages for conversions and delays to new generation aircraft entering the market, Cathay has no current plans to lease freighters ahead of the A350F’s entry into market.
But the airline hasn’t completely ruled out adding capacity as a stopgap, should the need arise, says Evans.
“We’d always be on the lookout for opportunities like that, but right now, our focus is on getting ready for the A350 freighters.
“We’re always keeping a close eye on how the market is changing. But ACMI rates have been quite high and our focus is very much on optimising the capacity and network we’ve got.”
He adds: “We are looking at the 2030 horizon now as part of the next five-year plan, and obviously those A350Fs are a big part of that, and they are a growth aircraft. And then we’ll need to see how we can plan our capacity needs into the next decade.”
Strong GBA demand
Cathay is well used to efficiently managing capacity. Six years ago, operations were curtailed by government-imposed pandemic lockdown and quarantine restrictions that severely restricted passenger flights and belly capacity.
“Passenger capacity was down to 2% for quite some time. Our freighters were the workhorses, and we were operating cargo-only passenger flights,” recalls Evans.
In the following years, the airline has gone from strength to strength.
Cathay Cargo’s 2025 volumes were up 9.4% year on year as it benefited from solid demand for specialist cargo handling throughout the year, as well as a stronger than expected peak season.
According to Evans, Cathay Cargo is seeing healthy demand out of its home hub at Hong Kong International Airport (HKG).
The airport is a regional transhipment hub and air logistics gateway to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), and strong production and export demand will see Cathay’s home market continue to grow, says Evans.
“There are huge volumes and business out of the Greater Bay Area. Hong Kong sits at the heart of that,” says Evans.
Cathay Cargo is well positioned to benefit as its current passenger and freighter fleet gives it between 25% to 30% of the total capacity share out of Hong Kong.
The airline also benefits from Hong Kong’s role as a transit hub for air cargo out of Southeast Asia, which is seeing increased production and strong air cargo capacity demand.
“There has been double-digit growth out of Southeast Asia and we’ve been beneficiaries of that as well,” says Evans.
Demand out of Hong Kong, the GBA and Southeast Asia combined has helped Cathay maintain high freighter load factors to the Americas, including Mexico.
“Our capacity to the Americas has held pretty consistent,” confirms Evans.
He points out that air cargo demand can quickly move from area to area, so agility is needed but Cathay is always prepared to shift its capacity.
“With planes, you’re lucky that you can redeploy to where the capacity is needed. You need to be able to be in a position to pivot and adjust.”
For example, Hanoi capacity was increased in the fourth quarter and flights to Madrid also took place during the peak season.
But, says Evans: “We will continue to operate the vast majority of our freighter capacity into the Americas. We operate anywhere between 33 to 38 flights a week and sometimes increase that in the peak season.
“We also look at how we can optimise the fleet and complement flights with more network support feeding on to those lanes.”
The stability of capacity to the US is an interesting topic, given the reduced e-commerce demand on the transpacific trade lane last year after the US decision to end the de minimis exemption.
Speaking about the initial reduction in e-commerce volumes from Asia to the US, Evans says that while Cathay did “have a hit on the Americas lane”, as an airline Cathay saw plenty of business on its Asia-Europe and Asia-Middle East routes and was able to move capacity accordingly.
He adds: “E-commerce doesn’t only go to North America, it goes to the Middle East and Europe. We’ve seen growth in e-commerce as a result of where platforms are trying to grow their businesses.”
Moreover, Asia-US e-commerce trade has now largely recovered, and e-commerce is just one commodity within a wide range of goods transported by Cathay Cargo.