Hong Kong Airlines (HX, Hong Kong International) will discontinue its scheduled flights to Los Angeles International from February 8, 2020. The last Hong Kong Airlines flight from Hong Kong International to Los Angeles will be HX068 on February 6, 2020, while the last flight from Los Angeles to Hong Kong will be HX069 on the same day. According to the ch-aviation schedules module, the airline offers 4x weekly A350-900 flights between the two cities.
The decision to implement this service cull comes after a meeting between the Hong Kong Government Transport and Housing Bureau (THB) with the airline on November 1. The THB has been closely monitoring the financial problems of Hong Kong Airlines, which is backed by the Chinese conglomerate HNA Group, for some time. After reviewing the financial improvement plans and information recently submitted by the carrier, the THB is of the view that the airline's financial situation has not improved, and that the situation is a matter of concern.
Given the challenging business environment, due in part to the ongoing anti-government protests taking place in Hong Kong since June which has suppressed travel demand, the airline has stated that it will monitor the Los Angeles market and decide if the suspension or flight consolidation needs to be implemented earlier.
In its statement, the airline also suggests that there is strong competition and overcapacity in the market. Looking at direct services between the two cities, American Airlines (AA, Dallas/Fort Worth) has a daily service, while Cathay Pacific (CX, Hong Kong International) offers a 3x daily operation.
In order to make essential cost savings, the carrier Hong Kong Airlines will trim its operations by around 6%, and will further adjust frequencies to some destinations in its network. Affected routes, along with Los Angeles, include Vancouver International, Osaka Kansai, Okinawa Naha, Sapporo Chitose, Tokyo Narita, Seoul Incheon, Haikou, Hangzhou, Nanjing, and Bangkok Suvarnabhumi.
