Cathay Pacific: Plans to cut flights to Delhi

Hong Kong’s flag carrier Cathay Pacific may be forced to prune its services to Delhi.

This comes in the wake of Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), which operates the airport, effecting a nearly 345% hike in the aeronautical charges which started from May 15 2012.

“With this kind of tariff, Delhi should be the most expensive airport in the world.” Mr Tom Wright, Cathay Pacific’s GM- South Asia, Middle East & Africa, told Business Line.

The airline currently flies 14 times a week to Delhi. The management does not intend to pass on rate hikes to passengers as it is seen to be an unrealistic proposition in the current environment.

Mr Wright also refused to buy the argument that Delhi airport required the hike for its financial viability. “With a world class airport such as Delhi, you cannot make losses. Then its financial model must be fundamentally flawed,” he said.

If Cathay Pacific snips its services to the Capital’s airport, it will be the fourth foreign airline to either cancel or reduce flights to Delhi in the recent months due to high costs.

The airline is still in the midst of evaluating the impact of the hike on its operations out of Delhi and will soon take a call on whether or not it should cut flights.

If it were to, its plans to expand operations in India, including increasing its Chennai service to daily from September and connecting Hyderabad and Kolkata, may be upset as the entire cycle will get affected.

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