Cathay Pacific Airways recently shut down its last international crew base, which will reportedly help the airline reduce its expenses after being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The shutdown comes as the carrier continues to restore passenger capacity and connectivity closer to its home base in Hong Kong.

Last month, the airline closed the remaining international pilot bases in the United States. As a result, several workers will relocate to Hong Kong. More than 60 US-based employees have left the carrier, according to Bloomberg News.

In a statement to Simple Flying, Cathay said,

“After a review of our pilot bases in the US, and in consultation with the relevant stakeholders, the US bases closed as of 31 October 2022, a number of pilots have relocated to join the team in Hong Kong.”

Worldwide crew bases are now in the past

Before the pandemic, the carrier had US pilot bases in Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco and a base for its busy cargo hub in Anchorage. Cathay's US bases housed around 100 pilots. In May, the carrier began reviewing the pilot bases due to concerns that US-based pilots were more expensive than Hong Kong-based pilots.

The other pilot centers in the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand shut down during the pandemic's peak.

"As a result, there are no more overseas pilot bases as we continue to review all areas of our business to ensure we have a focused, efficient and competitive business as we continue to build back connectivity at the Hong Kong hub," the airline said.

Recovering and rebuilding

Cathay and many other airlines are still reeling from the aftermath in a post-pandemic industry. On Monday, the carrier said an additional two years would be needed to fully recover its operations to pre-pandemic levels.

Hong Kong has eased its restrictions back to allowing travel without a mandatory quarantine, but passengers still have to be tested on arrival. Quarantine is still compulsory on arrival in the airline's largest market, mainland China, which can kill some of its regular demand.

Cathay Pacific's CEO, Augustus Tang, said Hong Kong's COVID restrictions put the airline in a unique situation.

“We are taking a measured and responsible approach to managing our own road to recovery, with a need to address challenges that are unique to Hong Kong. The city’s borders were closed for much longer than other markets and importantly, aircrew in Hong Kong were uniquely under quarantine constraints that weren’t lifted until September.” - Augustus Tang, Cathay Pacific CEO

According to Bloomberg, Cathay flew just 16% of its pre-pandemic passenger capacity in September. The airline's shares fell 4.2% on Monday, the most significant drop in three weeks.

Are there enough pilots?

With Cathay's international pilot bases closed, Tang spoke about the carrier's current staffing.

"Importantly, we have sufficient pilots, cabin crew and operational employees to support our current flight schedules, and we are confident that our ongoing recruitment plans will ensure this remains the case throughout the recovery," Tang said. "The short-term bottlenecks lie in the recertification of pilots who have not been flying regularly for a long period of time and the reactivation of aircraft. We have been bolstering our capabilities to expedite this process."

Last year, Cathay lost around 400 pilots but had plans to hire more this year. The carrier boosted monthly allowances in April to help retain its senior pilots.

Source: Bloomberg