Cathay Pacific increases flights and seats

Cathay Pacific will step up Auckland-Hong Kong flights to twice a day in November for summer due to strong demand, with one service using a larger aircraft adding almost 100 seats.

Latest International Air Transport Association figures point to signs of fragile recovery in air traffic and Cathay Pacific says forward bookings on its New Zealand route were "very positive".

The airline says the impact of swine flu was waning, with strong bookings from China and those originating in Japan.

Services increase to twice daily from November 1 and extra capacity comes on two weeks later when a 378-seat Boeing 747-400 takes over from a 283-seat Airbus A340 on afternoon flights.

In its latest financial monitor, IATA warns that the $13 billion estimated annual losses for the year may be exceeded, although there are signs of improvement in passenger numbers and freight.

Both rose more than 3 per cent in July from the previous month but both remain well below levels seen the same time last year.

Increasing signs of economic recovery added to the upward pressures from financial investors on both oil and jet fuel prices in August which rose back above US$80 a barrel.

While some airlines had been reporting fuel hedging gains as a result, cash flows told another story, IATA said.

"The cash impact of higher fuel prices remains negative, and particularly damaging given declines in passenger and cargo yields."