Dominic Perret has spent more than 26 years at Cathay and is now a year into his role as Director Cargo. In this episode of Conversations, recorded at the TIACA Air Cargo Forum in Miami, he talks to Reji John, Editor, STAT Publishing Group, about a volatile but strong year for Cathay Cargo and the plans behind its vision to be “not the biggest but the best” air cargo carrier.

In this conversation:

▶ First-half revenue up 23.9% and January–September tonnage up 9%, driven by demand for data-centre and AI hardware such as servers, CPUs and GPUs

▶ Why he expects the AI boom to carry into 2027, and why a diversified mix of e-commerce, pharma and perishables still matters

▶ The Greater Bay Area as an import market: the Air-Land Fresh Lane gets Chilean cherries, Australian grapes and Norwegian salmon into GBA markets the same evening, with ferries to Dongguan adding another option

▶ The fleet plan: 20 747 freighters, eight A350Fs on firm order with the first due in the second half of 2028, a newly leased A330 freighter from ATSG for regional routes, and 35 777-9s adding belly capacity

▶ The Middle East: Dubai and Riyadh suspended since February, and Europe freighters now making tech stops in Astana and, this winter, Navi Mumbai and Bengaluru

▶ Digital and AI: Manage My Booking, AI-assisted lithium battery screening, an AI compliance tool for import and export controls, and plans for agentic AI in customer service

▶ Opportunities in 2027 across the Chinese mainland, Southeast Asia and India, and his message to shippers on jet fuel costs and budgets

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Our Correspondent

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