has added a fourth weekly flight from Hong Kong to Riyadh, expanding its capacity to the Saudi Arabian city with an additional weekly itinerary.
Additional weekly flight
As flagged by AeroRoutes, Cathay Pacific has filed an additional weekly flight between Hong Kong International Airport
(HKG) and Riyadh King Khalid International Airport (RUH) during the upcoming International Air Transport Association (IATA) summer season.
Starting in April, the Hong Kong-based airline will complement its Monday, Thursday, and Saturday departures with an additional flight that will leave the Special Administrative Region (SAR) on Fridays.
Photo: EQ Roy I Shutterstock
The airline’s fourth weekly flight will be operated with an Airbus A350-900
, similar to its current itineraries between Hong Kong and Riyadh
. According to the airline’s site, its A350-900s have 280 seats, welcoming 38 business, 28 premium economy, and 214 economy class travelers onboard.
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Sole carrier
According to data from the aviation analytics company Cirium’s Diio Mi airline planning tool, Cathay Pacific will remain the only airline connecting the two cities so far. The Hong Kong carrier began serving the route in November 2024, returning to the Saudi Arabian city since it abandoned the route in February 2017.
At the time, Cathay Pacific had operated four weekly flights on the route, utilizing an Airbus A330-300
with 262 seats (39 business and 223 economy class).
Meanwhile, OAG Traffic Analyzer data showed that 10,056 passengers flew between Hong Kong and Riyadh (one way) from August 2023 to July 2024. While the number depicts point-to-point passengers, travelers could also connect onward at either airport.
Photo: BearFotos | Shutterstock
Since 2000, the only other airline that flew between Riyadh and Hong Kong was Saudi Arabia’s own SAUDIA
, which operated a twice-weekly itinerary between April 2007 and March 2011. During the same timeframe, Cathay Pacific entered the market in August 2009.
Airport Coordination Limited (ACL), which is the slot coordinator for dozens of airports around the world, including Riyadh, indicated that during the upcoming season, while Cathay Pacific lost 30 historic slots, its slot portfolio grew to 240, allowing the airline to launch the fourth weekly flight to the Saudi Arabian city. The airline requested 300 slots for the season.
Apart from Riyadh, Cathay Pacific’s other destination in the Middle East is 
Dubai International Airport
(DXB), where the airline plans daily flights year-round.
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Growing non-Asia network
Cirium’s Diio Mi showed that Cathay Pacific will continue growing its non-Asia network, adding flights to destinations it had not served during the previous summer.
In June, the airline’s non-Asian network should include 303 weekly departures, compared to 223 in June 2024, an increase of 35.9%, with weekly seats growing as much as 21.7%. The carrier’s planned non-Asian network in June is displayed on the map below.
Photo: Great Circle Map
Recently, Cathay Pacific introduced a number of new and/or returning destinations to which it will launch flights during the upcoming summer season, including Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
(DFW) or Rome Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino Airport (FCO).
Related
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