While we would like to thank your correspondent for comments about our pricing policy, we must address some misconceptions which appeared in his/her letter headlined, 'Over-priced airline' (South China Morning Post, March 15).
In particular, the claim that Cathay Pacific seldom offers attractive packages and discounts like other airlines is simply not true.
Over the past year we have run a large number of discounts including the 'Hong Kong Super Offer', which offered two tickets for the price of one, and 'Fly to Win', which involved the give-away of 3,000 air tickets. These were widely advertised in Hong Kong and abroad.
It may surprise the reader to know the majority of Cathay passengers travel on some form of discounted ticket. Our figures show that during 1998 about 60 per cent of our passengers travelled on some form of discounted fare. During the same year, our average fares, or yields, were reduced by almost 19 per cent.
Air travel is an intensely competitive business as can be witnessed by the fact that more than 60 airlines serve Hong Kong through hundreds of authorised travel agents.
In such an environment, it is not possible for an airline to survive if it is not aware of the law of competition.
