Cathay Pacific精东影业 air freight division, Cathay Cargo, has announced an order for six next-generation Airbus A350F freighters.
Cathay Cargo currently operates a fleet of 14 Boeing 747-8Fs and six Boeing 747-400ERFs but has decided, for the moment at least, that its future lies with Airbus.聽聽
The announcement of the deal came on December 8, 2023, with Cathay buoyant that the order ensures Hong Kong remains the 鈥渨orld精东影业 number one air cargo hub鈥.
The yet-to-be-released Airbus A350F is expected to be delivered to Cathay from 2027. As part of the agreement the airline also has an option to purchase an additional 20 A350F aircraft.
According to Cathay Cargo the new planes will be used to link Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland with destinations in North and South America as well as Europe.
鈥淎s we move into 2024, our rebuild journey is gaining momentum. This order marks another major component in our investment for the future,鈥 Ronald Lam, Cathay Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) said.聽鈥淚t reflects Cathay精东影业 confidence in the Hong Kong hub as we look ahead to the opportunities provided by the . These highly fuel-efficient, next-generation freighters will provide important additional cargo capacity, expand our global network and contribute to our sustainability leadership goals.鈥澛
Cathay Group is already one of the largest operators of the A350, with a current fleet of 47 passenger aircraft.
These include both the A350-900 and A350-1000, which are primarily operated on the carrier精东影业 long haul route network.
鈥淭here’s a new standard in the cargo space and we are gratified that such a savvy global air-cargo operator as Cathay has joined the growing number of reference players in the air-freight industry endorsing the A350F,鈥 Christian Scherer, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer and Head of International said. 鈥淭he aircraft will fit seamlessly with Cathay精东影业 existing A350 passenger fleet, while lowering operating costs to a level never before seen in increasingly competitive cargo markets. At the same time, it will bring a very significant reduction in carbon emissions, contributing immediately to sustainability goals.鈥
The Cathay Group now has 77 aircraft on order, which includes 21 Boeing 777-9 aircraft scheduled to be delivered from 2025 and a total of 49 Airbus A320neo and A321neo aircraft expected to be delivered by 2029.
