In a profit warning, Cathay said the loss had been caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, as per media reports.

Cathay reported the biggest loss in the company’s reporting of a six-month or full-year period from a HK$1.3 billion net profit in the same time last year.

Its previous biggest loss was in 2008 at the height of the global financial crisis, when it lost HK$8.6 billion. The company said 16 Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon planes would not re-enter service before the summer of 2021, causing an estimated HK$2.4 billion loss.

It is the first time the airline has given an estimate of how many fewer aircraft it would require to operate its optimal schedule post-pandemic, giving a better indication of company size and how many staff it would ultimately need.

The airline has been losing up to HK$3 billion a month since February as the pandemic crippled the aviation industry worldwide.

In June, Cathay continued to carry less than 1 per cent of its normal passenger volume, handling 900 customers a day on average, a far cry from the 100,000 on average. It operated less than 4 per cent of its normal schedule.