Cathay Pacific Airways has agreed to take full control of all-cargo subsidiary Air Hong Kong in a deal worth HK$194 million ($25 million).
The Oneworld alliance carrier already owns 75% of the airline, which operates three Boeing 747-200Fs to Japan, South Korea, and points in Europe and the Middle East. The 747-200Fs are all leased from Cathay.
Cathay is purchasing the 25% that it does not own from Stabilo, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hong Kong conglomerate Shun Tak Holdings, controlled by casino magnate Stanley Ho.
Air Hong Kong was established as Hong Kong's only all-cargo airline in the mid-1980s but it lost money every year for nearly a decade, until Cathay acquired 75% in 1994 in a deal that left Shun Tak with 25%.
Cathay chairman James Hughes-Hallett says the purchase is designed to position it to take advantage of a future upturn in the market.
Air Hong Kong is the smallest of Hong Kong's three airlines., the second-largest being Dragonair, which is minority-owned by Cathay and its parent Swire Pacific. Both Cathay and Dragonair operate freighters of their own.
Source: Flight International
