Virgin Australia says that competition will be damaged and passengers could end up paying higher fares if Qantas and Cathay Pacific are allowed to expand their codesharing deal on flights to Hong Kong. Qantas and Cathay have had a codeshare deal in place since October last year that allows passengers to book Qantas tickets on flights operated by Cathay between Hong Kong and Perth and Cairns - routes that Qantas does not fly. But in early January Qantas applied to Australian regulators to expand the tie-up so that Cathay could offer codeshare services on Qantas' Hong Kong flights from March 31. Virgin, the only other airline flying between Australia and Hong Kong, has cried foul over the proposal, warning it would further reduce competition and hurt the flying public. <br/>
oneworld
Cathay Pacific Airways has become the latest airline to join “Worldwide by EasyJet,” enabling passengers of the two airlines to connect through London Gatwick. EasyJet said Cathay Pacific’s flights will go live on the booking platform “in the coming weeks.” “As the first global airline connections service by a European low-fares airline, ‘Worldwide’ is gaining real momentum. December was a record month for connections and January has started equally strongly, seeing the most growth in connections through Tegel and London Gatwick,” EasyJet CE Johan Lundgren said. “Worldwide by EasyJet” is a web-based connecting-flight booking platform, provided by technology firm Dohop. The service launched in Sept 2017, opening up a new 70m passenger market segment for EasyJet. <br/>