Cathay Pacific returns to normal schedules today

Mumbai, Aug 4 (UNI) Cathay Pacific has announced that it plans to return to its normal flight schedule as far as possible from 0900 hours today.

Most of the airline's flights were cancelled yesterday because of excessive winds in and around Hong Kong International airport at Chek Lap Kok, a release here said.

The first flights scheduled to leave this morning were bound for Manila, Sydney and Kuala Lumpur. Five Cathay Pacific inbound flights had landed at HKIA from 0800 this morning. The airline plans to deploy additional aircraft and crew in an attempt to clear the backlog of passengers who were stranded as a result of yesterday's typhoon.

Passengers booked on today's scheduled services should be able to board their flights as planned although there might be some delays.

They should call the airlines reservations offices in advance or go to the Cathay Pacific website www.cathaypacific.com to check the status of their flights.

In the meantime, the airline is doing everything it can to rebook all those passengers whose flights were cancelled yesterday. The airline has advised these passengers not to go to the airport but to call the nearest Cathay Pacific reservations office.

More than 50 Cathay Pacific outbound flights were cancelled yesterday and 42 other flights were diverted to regional airports including Manila, Bangkok, Taipei, Guangzhou and Xiamen. In India, the airline provided hotel accomodation for its international passengers and those connecting from domestic ports. In addition, where applicable the airline bore costs of transport and other sundry expenses.

Cathay Pacific said that bookings on today's scheduled flights were particularly heavy as this is the peak season for holiday and other travel. The airline again expressed its regrets for the inconvenience caused by the typhoon and said its first priority was to return its schedule to normal as quickly as possible and to clear the backlog of stranded passengers at the earliest possible time.

But given the large numbers of people involved and the high load factors this would take some time. Some 28,000 passengers were booked to fly from Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific flights today.

Regular updates will be posted on the airline's website www.cathaypacific.com UNI LS GB VKG1635