Cathay’s exit latest chapter in decline of int’l ops at Cairns Airport

By Andrew Curran.

Cairns Airport has lost another airline customer, with Cathay Pacific saying that it won’t be returning to operate its seasonal services to and from Hong Kong. The news marks another chapter in the airline’s on-again, off-again relationship with Cairns and highlights the airport’s decline from its heyday.

The Cairns Post reported over the weekend that Cathay Pacific would not be resuming its thrice-weekly A330-300-operated round-trips that normally run between December and February. The airline says it is a commercial decision.

Cathy’s on-again off-again relationship with Cairns

Cathay Pacific was lured back to Cairns for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 seasons, supported in part by the Queensland Government’s Connecting Queensland Fund (formerly the Attracting Aviation Investment Fund). Before that, the airline flew to Cairns year-round for more than two decades before axing the route in late 2019.

The route ferried in tourists heading to the Great Barrier Reef and was also popular with local residents, who liked the easy access to one of the world’s largest transit airports. But the route has some particular characteristics, including a relatively small population in the Cairns region. It is primarily an inbound service.

Local tourism officials say talks are continuing with Cathay Pacific about returning to Cairns in the future.

Australian Government data shows 15,728 passengers travelled on the Cairns – Hong Kong city pair between December 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025. Cathay Pacific is the only airline flying on the route. Cathay trimmed its 2025/26 Cairns season, flying to the city over the December 2025–February 2026 period.

The same data shows that 14,051 passengers travelled on the Cairns – Hong Kong city pair between December 1, 2025, and February 28, 2026.

Over the longer 14-week 2024/25 season, Cathay’s two-class A330-300s used on the route provided around 27,000 seats. The Queensland Government estimated the flights injected around AUD20 million (USD14.2 million) into the local economy over the season. Cathay also carried a lot of freight in the belly hold of its aircraft, particularly on the return Cairns to Hong Kong sector.

Local politician says state government ministers are MIA

This week, Cairns-based state politician Michael Healy said Cathay’s decision to end its flights to Cairns was a fresh setback for Far North Queensland’s tourism industry.

“What the hell are they (the Queensland Government) doing with that (Attracting Aviation) fund?” he asked.

“We have not heard a thing or seen any leadership from the State Tourism Minister in this space, and what is the Assistant Minister for Tourism doing? What do we hear? Absolutely nothing!”

The Queensland Government has not commented on Cathay’s decision beyond saying it has “a plan” to increase international flights to North Queensland. Its Connecting Queensland Fund is underpinned by AUD75 million (USD53.4 million) of taxpayers’ money. The government puts cash on the table to lure airlines to Queensland, provided those airlines match the government’s contribution at a minimum dollar-for-dollar basis.

Currently, the fund supports Qantas’ Auckland (AKL) – Coolangatta/Gold Coast (OOL) flights; Fiji Airways’ Nadi (NAN) – Coolangatta/Gold Coast flights; Air New Zealand’s Auckland – Brisbane (BNE) and Christchurch (CHC) – Brisbane flights; China Southern’s Guangzhou (CAN) – Brisbane flights; China Eastern’s Shanghai (PVG) – Brisbane flights; and Jetstar’s Maroochydore/Sunshine Coast (MCY) – Denpasar (DPS) flights.

International passenger traffic through Cairns is in long term decline

Notably, no international airlines are lining up to fly to Cairns, even with government money on the table. Cairns became an increasingly popular international tourist destination from the mid-1980s. A new international airport and direct flights to Japan sparked a massive wave of inbound tourism.

Newspaper reports from the time say Cairns Airport was expected to process around 700,000 international passengers over the 12 months to June 30, 1993. Australian Government data covering the 12 months to June 30, 2000, says the airport handled 654,171 international passengers over that period. Fast-forward to the 12 months to June 30, 2026, and Cairns Airport processed 676,772 international passengers over the period – a decline of more than 3% over the 33-year timeframe.

The Japanese and Japanese airlines departed Cairns Airport a long time ago. Since then, the tourism-dependent city’s fortunes have waxed and waned. International airlines have come and gone. Qantas operated its last Japan – Cairns flights in the late 1990s and ended international operations altogether at the airport in 2019, although its low-cost offshoot, Jetstar, continues to fly between Cairns and Japan.

More recently, AirAsia axed its Cairns – Denpasar flights and Singapore Airlines downsized its Singapore – Cairns services from A350-900s to B737-8s.

Air New Zealand also operates seasonal services to Cairns from Auckland and Christchurch, Air Niugini flies in from Port Moresby (POM), and Jetstar flies to Denpasar from Cairns in addition to Tokyo Narita (NRT) and Osaka (KIX).

Cairns Airport CEO Richard Barker called Cathay Pacific’s decision disappointing but understandable.

“Airlines around the world are being impacted by volatility and uncertainty in global markets,” he said.

Photo: Cairns Airport.
Contact the writer: andrew@aerosouthpacific.com