Cathay/Dragonair May cargo volume rises faster than capacity

Cathay/Dragonair May cargo volume rises faster than capacity Cathay Pacific and sister airline Dragonair together carried 140,698 tons of cargo and mail in May, up 7.8 percent on the same month last year, the Hong Kong-based carrier said Friday.
   The results mean demand outpaced growth in cargo capacity, by 6.5 percent, measured in available cargo/mail ton kilometers, Cathay said. The cargo and mail load factor rose by 1.1 percentage points to 67 percent. Year to date, cargo tonnage has risen by 7.5 percent, compared to a capacity rise of 7.8 percent.
   “May is usually an off-peak month for cargo but we still achieved a healthy growth over the same month last year,” said Ron Mathison, Cathay Pacific director and general manager of cargo. “The main problem continues to be the continuing rise of jet fuel prices, which is having a serious impact on the bottom line of our freighter operations.”