Cathay Pacific HK-Manchester service expected to add momentum

Direct flights between Manchester and Hong Kong, that were announced earlier this month, will provide the much-needed momentum for China's growing trade links with the British city, sources say.

According to sources, the direct flights operated by Cathay Pacific would be the first connecting a Chinese city and Manchester. It comes after close to three years of negotiations and follows the sister agreement inked between Manchester Airport and Beijing Airport's parent company Beijing Capital International in 2011.

The new service is expected to be operational on Dec 8, and will initially operate four times a week. The route will be serviced by Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, which can accommodate 340 people in business, premium economy and economy classes.

According to Charlie Cornish, the chief executive of the Manchester Airport, the new connection will not only be profitable, but also a game-changer for the Manchester economy.

Manchester, a key industrial hub in the UK, is currently exploring various options to enhance its standing as an important international travel hub. It is also setting up the over 800 million pound ($1.3 billion; 956 million euros) Airport City Manchester project, that has Chinese construction firm Beijing Construction Engineering Group as one of the contractors.

Cornish says that the huge demand from business and leisure travelers in Manchester and Hong Kong was the tipping point for Cathay to start direct services.

According to statistics provided by the UK Civil Aviation Authority, some 200,800 passengers traveled from Manchester to Hong Kong in 2013. Cornish says passenger flows to cities like Beijing and Shanghai from Manchester have also been rising steadily and could soon pave the way for direct connections to these cities.

Manchester Airport is also in talks with some Chinese carriers and Cornish expresses confidence that concrete agreements would be reached soon. Cornish, however, says that flights operated by Chinese carriers are most likely to happen after they expand their fleets.

Angus Barclay, general manager for Europe at Cathay Pacific, feels that the vibrant business, travel links between China and England, has prompted carriers like Cathay to launch new flights. Manchester's close proximity to cities like Liverpool and Leeds, which have strong links with China, has been another important factor he says.

Currently Cathay operates five daily flights between Hong Kong and London. It also operates frequent flights between Hong Kong and other European cities, including Rome, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Milan and Moscow.

Barclay says London is an important airport hub connecting China and Europe, as the number of flights Cathay operates between Hong Kong and London is the highest. The next busiest route is between Hong Kong and Paris, which runs 14 flights every week.

Despite London being a favored transit hub, it still faces obvious challenges as plans to expand the capacity of Heathrow Airport by building a third runway are still awaiting approval.

Heathrow lags other major European airports like Paris and Frankfurt in the number of annual flights they operate to the top three Chinese cities, says a 2011 report published by global consultancy Frontier Economics.

The report also estimated that the British economy is losing at least 1.2 billion pounds every year due to lack of flight connections and this trade goes to better-connected European competitors.

Airport City Manchester, for example, is hoping to attract many Chinese businesses to establish regional headquarters in Manchester, and use it as a springboard for other European markets. This may lead to more direct flights between China and Manchester, Cornish says.

Other British airports are also looking to attract Chinese carriers. Birmingham International Airport has recently extended its runway from 2,600 meters to a little more than 3,000 meters, so that it can better accommodate long haul direct flights from countries like China.

Cornish adds that the new flights will bring great economic benefits to the airport itself through increased passenger flows, as well as creating a better platform for economic ties between China and Manchester.

Wang Shiyu contributed to this story.

cecily.liu@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 04/25/2014 page23)