Cathay Pacific fills in for Air NZ on Hong Kong route to cover Dreamliner issues

Cathay Pacific will take over Air NZ flights on the Hong Kong-Auckland route over much of summer to allow more flexibility for the Kiwi carrier as it deals with Dreamliner engine problems. Cathay Pacific will introduce an additional Airbus A350-900 aircraft on the route from January 6 to January 19 and will also operate a Boeing 777-300ER on the same route from February 1 until March 28, 2020. These services are additional to Cathay's summer schedule. The airlines are commercial partners and the timing works well for both - Air NZ is looking for back-up aircraft and Cathay faces a sharp drop in demand. The Hong Kong carrier has just announced it will cut seat capacity by 1.4 per cent across its global network in 2020 as Hong Kong's political troubles and trade tensions hurt the airline. Air NZ says customers booked to travel with it on this route during these two periods will be automatically transferred to these services for both periods. The move allows Air NZ capacity flexibility in its international operations as it deals with the impact of issues with the Rolls-Royce engines on its Boeing 787-9 aircraft.<br/>