Hong Kong-based carrier Cathay Pacific Airways has said that it plans to hire more flight attendants and pilots from the Chinese mainland as the airline continues to increase the number of flights connecting the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong with overseas destinations.

The airline is working to attract more Chinese mainland talent to support its future development plans. Currently, the group has more than 30,000 employees from some 70 countries and regions, including about 3,000 employees from the Chinese mainland. By the end of this year, it aims to raise the number of Chinese mainland employees to 4,000.

With operating bases in Beijing and Shanghai, Cathay Pacific plans to mainly hire flight attendants in the Chinese mainland, as well as more pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers, ground crew members and information technology personnel.

In Shenzhen and Guangzhou of Guangdong province, the company has two offices that focus on the technology side of the business and it hopes to soon expand these teams to about 200 people in total.

"In the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, there are many excellent digital talent and research companies, providing a great platform for Cathay Pacific to attract more outstanding Chinese mainland talent," said Patricia Hwang, director of people at Cathay Group.

"The total number of flights operated by Cathay Pacific has rebounded to the pre-pandemic level. This year, we aim to increase the number of destinations that we fly to 100 worldwide and continue to increase investments. We are confident in our growth potential," Hwang said.

Cathay Pacific announced last year that it would invest more than HK$100 billion ($12.87 billion) in the next seven years for its development strategy. This includes increasing investment in its fleet, cabin products, lounges, digital upgrades and sustainable development, the company said.

Meanwhile, the group reported an attributable profit of HK$9.9 billion last year, higher than a profit of HK$9.8 billion in 2023, driven by stronger cargo demand, higher passenger volumes, lower fuel price and higher cost efficiencies, according to its annual report released in mid-March.

For new flights to the Chinese mainland, Cathay Pacific recently announced that it plans to launch direct flights connecting Hong Kong and Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, starting from April 28. The new four-flights-per-week return service will bring the airline's passenger network in the Chinese mainland to 20 destinations.

"Urumqi is an exciting new addition to our network, directly connecting our home city with an important Belt and Road hub in Northwest China," said Lavinia Lau, chief customer and commercial officer at Cathay Group.

This summer, Cathay Pacific and the group's low-cost carrier HK Express will together operate over 290 return flights per week between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland.

Besides, the International Air Transport Association recently released data showing global passenger demand in January. Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers, climbed 10 percent year-on-year, while total capacity, measured in available seat kilometers, grew by 7.1 percent year-on-year. The January load factor was 82.1 percent, an all-time high for the month.

In particular, Asia-Pacific airlines achieved a 21.8 percent year-on-year increase in demand. Capacity increased 16.5 percent year-on-year and the load factor was 86.7 percent. Traffic from Northeast Asia was particularly strong, said IATA, which represents some 340 airlines comprising over 80 percent of global air traffic.

"We have seen a notable acceleration in demand this January, with a particularly strong performance by carriers based in the Asia-Pacific region. The record high load factors that accompany this strong demand are yet another reminder of the persistent supply chain issues in the aerospace sector," said Willie Walsh, IATA's director-general.

"The strong growth in demand aligns with the results of our latest passenger survey done in November 2024, in which 94 percent of travelers indicated that they planned to travel as much or more in the coming 12 months than they did in the past year," Walsh added.