Cathay Pacific to Boost UK Connectivity with Additional Flights to Gatwick and Manchester

On the back of strengthening demand for flights connecting Hong Kong and the United Kingdom, Cathay Pacific today announced that its current four-times-weekly service to Gatwick will become a daily operation from June 2017. In a further boost to the airline's UK connectivity, Manchester will see the addition of a fifth weekly flight and become an all Airbus A350-900 operation in June.

Gatwick

The airline's current four-times-weekly Gatwick service, which utilises the Airbus A350-900, will become a daily operation from 1 June, highlighting the popularity of the route since its September launch. Together with the airline's services to Heathrow, Cathay Pacific will operate up to six daily non-stop flights between Hong Kong and London next year – more than any other carrier.

Manchester

Manchester, which was launched just two years ago, will receive one additional flight per week from Hong Kong, increasing the operation to a five-times-weekly service from 2 June. At the same time, the A350 will replace the Boeing 777-300ER on all flights to the northern English city, making it the second Cathay Pacific destination in the UK, after Gatwick, to receive the technologically-advanced aircraft.

Featuring the airline's newest products in Business, Premium Economy and Economy Class, the A350 encapsulates Cathay Pacific's brand promise of a "Life Well Travelled". In addition to the latest seats and an enhanced inflight entertainment system, the aircraft is Wi-Fi equipped, meaning passengers can stay connected throughout their journey.

Cathay Pacific Chief Executive Ivan Chu said: "The UK is a very important market for us, one which we have served for over 35 years. Our additional Airbus A350-operated frequencies to Gatwick and Manchester underline the deep-rooted commitment we have to providing both business and leisure passengers with increased convenience and superior in-flight products, which give travellers even more reasons to choose Cathay Pacific."

Cathay Pacific currently operates 43 non-stop flights to the United Kingdom per week, including five daily services to Heathrow and four-times-weekly services to Gatwick and Manchester. It has expanded its Europe network considerably in recent years, launching services to Zurich and Düsseldorf in 2015 followed by Madrid and Gatwick this year. The airline currently operates 93 direct flights to 10 European cities each week and will launch a new four-times-weekly service between Hong Kong and Tel Aviv in March next year.

Cathay Pacific has also reopened its newly renovated lounge at Heathrow – the only lounge on its expanding global network outside of Hong Kong to offer separate First and Business Class areas – to wide acclaim.

The flight schedule for Cathay Pacific's Gatwick (LGW) and Manchester (MAN) services will be as follows (all times local):

Gatwick (LGW) effective 1 June 2017

Manchester (MAN) effective 2 June 2017

Note: Flight number and schedule may change without prior notice.