oneworld: Hong Kong's global airline alliance

05 giugno 2002

Hong Kong: oneworld™ - the global airline alliance comprising Aer Lingus, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Finnair, Iberia, LanChile and Qantas – is the most international airline alliance in the world… and the leading global alliance serving Hong Kong.

Four of its member airlines serve the territory with a total of some 160 daily departures from the territory every day, to approaching 50 cities in more than 25 countries. Connecting flights across the overall network offered by oneworld carriers can carry travellers from the region to more than 570 destinations in 135 territories.

Hong Kong is the main base of oneworld founder member Cathay Pacific – and has been since it was originally formed in 1946. It offers an average of 151 flights a day from Hong Kong International Airport to 44 cities in 26 countries.

British Airways has been serving Hong Kong since 1936 and today operates two daily return flights to London, using Boeing 747-400s.

Qantas links the territory with five cities in Australia – Sydney, Brisbane, Cairns, Melbourne and Perth – with a total of 29 departures a week. The carrier first flew to Hong Kong in 1949.

Latest oneworld carrier to launch Hong Kong services is Finnair, which inaugurated flights to and from its Helsinki hub, via Bangkok, on 7 February this year. It currently operates three MD11s a week on the route.

American Airlines hopes a new air services agreement between Hong Kong and the USA will enable it to start its own non-stop flights between the territory and Chicago in the near future.

Apart from supporting the Hong Kong economy with vital air services, oneworld carriers are big employers in the area, too. Cathay Pacific itself employs some 12.000 people in Hong Kong. Between them, the other three airlines flying into Hong Kong, with American Airlines, which maintains a sales presence there, support around 650 additional jobs.

Two oneworld carriers operate to mainland China – British Airways offers 14 flights a week between Beijing and London and Finnair flies between Beijing and Helsinki four times a week