Cathay Pacific will begin flying non-stop to Seattle next year, with a new four-times-weekly service set to take off on March 31.
This will be Hong Kong’s sole non-stop connection to Seattle, following Delta Air Lines’ announcement last month that it would be dropping its own route between the two cities this October.
The announcement comes as Hong Kong’s flag carrier gears up for its new service to Washington DC this September, which will be the longest route in the airline’s network and the first to officially fly its newest aircraft, the Airbus A350-1000.
Business Traveller was on the delivery flight of Cathay Pacific’s first A350-1000 last month. A first look of the new aircraft can be read here.
Unlike the upcoming Washington DC service, the new Seattle route unfortunately won’t see Cathay Pacific’s newest aircraft. Instead, the route will be operated by its predecessor, the A350-900.
While the A350-900 does feature largely the same seat products as the A350-1000 – the latter aircraft has a brand new economy class seat but offers the same products in the premium economy and business class cabins as its predecessor – the A350-900 is smaller, thereby offering slightly less capacity.
Reviews of Cathay Pacific’s business and economy classes on board the A350-900 can be read here and here, respectively.
Flights to Seattle will depart Hong Kong on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays, while the return flights will leave Seattle on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
| Flight No. | From | To | Departs | Arrives | Days |
| CX858 | Hong Kong (HKG) | Seattle (SEA) | 2355 | 2100 | Tue, Thu, Sat, Sun |
| CX857 | Seattle (SEA) | Hong Kong (HKG) | 0105 | 0525+1 | Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun |
Seattle will be Cathay Pacific’s eighth service to the US and its 10th route to North America, joining services to Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York (JFK), New York (Newark), San Francisco, Toronto and Vancouver that already operate.
Speaking about the new route, Cathay Pacific CEO, Ruper Hogg, said: “There are strong business, trade and cultural ties between Hong Kong and the city and we believe there will be considerable demand for both business and leisure travel on this new route.
“We have developed a significant presence in the United States and the launch of Seattle not only reaffirms our commitment to the important North American market but also to strengthening Hong Kong’s status as Asia’s largest international aviation hub.”
In related news, Chicago is also set to be the first route to feature Cathay Pacific’s brand new long-haul business class dining concept starting at the end of this month. The new meal service features new dishes, tableware and menu cards as well as a revamped service style that includes plated dishes, express meal options and “room service” style breakfast ordering.
Business Traveller was given a preview of the new dishes yesterday, as well as the new menu and tableware.
[embed]https://www.businesstraveller.com/business-travel/2018/07/18/heres-what-cathay-pacifics-new-business-class-dining-concept-will-offer/[/embed]A full schedule for the rollout can be viewed here. Cathay Pacific plans to roll the new service out to all of its long-haul routes by mid-2019.
