“As such, we now only expect to maintain similar passenger capacity levels to August 2021 for the remainder of the year, whilst remaining responsive to any unexpected changes in travel restrictions.”

The airline’s cargo business, however, remains strong as it heads into the peak season, able to charge significantly more to carry items given the shortage of global air freight capacity and constraints at seaports.

Cargo currently accounts for 80 per cent of the airline’s revenue.

In June, Cathay said it aimed to restore its passenger flight capacity to 30 per cent of pre-coronavirus levels by the fourth quarter this year, which begins next month.

However, since that target was announced, Hong Kong has only tightened its grip on its borders, with much-hyped travel bubbles failing to happen and the number of countries health authorities have deemed “high-risk” for travel expanded.

Cathay benefited, as expected, from a rise in temporary student traffic last month, leading to its planes running at 46.4 per cent capacity, the highest rate since March 2020. The rush home also led to the airline’s heaviest flight schedule in that period as well.

“In general, inbound traffic slowed down after August 20 when the Hong Kong SAR government tightened quarantine requirements for travellers arriving in Hong Kong from 16 overseas places,” Lam noted.

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Last month, the United States, France, Malaysia, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates were among 15 countries upgraded to the city’s “high-risk” category, meaning inbound travellers needed to spend 21 days rather than 14 in hotel quarantine.

The airline had also hoped to be operating as much as a fifth of its pre-pandemic flights by August, driven by a short-term boost of student travel out of the mainland. Instead, it managed just 13 per cent.

Since the pandemic began, the airline has racked up losses of HK$29.2 billion, including a HK$7.57 billion loss in the first half of this year.

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A collapse in travel demand, the closing of borders and Hong Kong’s having one of the strictest quarantine regimes in the world have all combined to hold back the recovery of the city’s airlines.

Cathay said it carried 135,353 passengers last month, or 4,366 customers a day – 95 per cent fewer than in August 2019.

Andrew Lee, an analyst at the financial services firm Jefferies, said in a report that an improvement in Cathay’s passenger business was unlikely to take place until 2022.

“Passenger recovery has stalled again given ongoing travel restrictions, as we expect international traffic to return only when [the Hong Kong]-China border opens, leading Cathay to cut fourth quarter passenger capacity target,” Lee wrote.

Lee noted the 150 per cent month-on-month jump in passenger numbers was a “short-term one-off” driven by student demand.

However, his outlook remained positive given the strength of Cathay’s cargo business, which he said was “the key revenue generator and profitable”.

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Instead, the government has extended the temporary aircrew quarantine rules until the end of October 31, though Cathay Pacific has told staff there would be additional testing requirements put in place without specifying what they might be.

The Transport and Housing Bureau said the city’s quarantine requirements were “formulated on a risk-based approach, taking into account public health considerations, the vaccination rate of aircrew and the operational needs of the aviation industry”.

It added: “Adjustments, if any, to the quarantine requirements applicable to aircrew will be disseminated to relevant stakeholders as appropriate.”