SAYONI BHADURI – Mumbai
Hong Kong headquartered Cathay Pacific Airways has introduced Premium Economy cabins in India. “We will see the Premium Economy class being introduced in all Cathay Pacific flights in to India,” said Charlie Stewart-Cox, general manager – South Asia, Middle East and Africa, Cathay Pacific. Stewart-Cox has replaced Tom Wright. He also announced that the airline will increase the number of flights between Mumbai and Hong Kong, operating 10 weekly non-stop flights between the two cities from April 2, 2013. They will also offer a three-class configuration – Business Class, Premium Economy Class and the Economy Class for passengers travelling on the Hyderabad-Hong Kong route from February 1, 2013.
“India is one of the fastest growing market for us. We have a load factor of almost 80 per cent from India,” added Stewart-Cox. The airline gets 95 per cent load factor on the front end, about 50-60 per cent load factor in the first class from India. The Premium Economy class is 30 per cent more expensive than the Economy and 50 per cent cheaper than the Business Class. “We are expecting 10-15 per cent revenue from the new Premium Economy. Even yields are expected to go up,” said Rakesh Raicar, sales and marketing manager – India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan, Cathay Pacific Airways.
The airline has introduced new in-flight products in Delhi and Chennai and has also extended its presence in India with a new four-times-weekly service between Hong Kong and Hyderabad. Together with sister airline Dragonair, the group now operates 46 weekly flights from six cities in India.
Expressing his thoughts on the global aviation business for 2013, Stewart-Cox said that aviation sector is not out of the woods. “Economic slump, high fuel costs which in turn increase maintenance cost are making matters worse,” he said. Even in the cargo, business across trade routes and tonnage has decreased. Cathay Pacific for its part is phasing out older models of gas-guzzling Boeing 747s for modern and efficient crafts. “We are also reducing flights from destinations with low load factors. We are continuing and improving the customer value proposition,” he added.
