
Eighty years ago, former World War II pilots Roy Farrell and Sydney de Kantzow founded Cathay Pacific Airways in Hong Kong, beginning operations with a single Douglas DC-3 named 'Betsy' flying goods between Australia and Shanghai; today the airline operates 180 aircraft and, with HK Express, carried 37 million passengers in 2025.
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Cathay Pacific Airways was founded in 1946 by former World War II pilots Roy Farrell and Sydney de Kantzow in Hong Kong, starting with a single Douglas DC-3 aircraft nicknamed 'Betsy' that transported goods between Australia and Shanghai.
Eighty years ago, former World War II pilots Roy Farrell and Sydney de Kantzow registered Cathay Pacific Airways in Hong Kong.
Operations began with a single, converted Douglas DC-3 nicknamed “Betsy” which initially flew much-needed goods between Australia and post-war Shanghai.
Today, the airline operates a fleet of 180 aircraft and, together with its budget arm HK Express, transported 37 million passengers in 2025.
In this On This Day article, we chart the company’s history through SCMP’s archive photos and coverage.

The 2026 World Intelligent and Connected Vehicle Conference will be held at the Yizhuang Beiren Yichuang International Convention and Exhibition Center in Beijing from October 21st to 23rd. It is co-sponsored by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Transport, and the Beijing Municipal People's Government. Hao Lishun, deputy director of the Equipment Industry Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China, said that the "15th Five-Year Plan" period will promote the international development of automobile companies to be more stable, support foreign-funded companies to deeply explore the Chinese market, guide domestic companies to improve independent innovation capabilities, improve cross-border logistics and risk prevention, and promote the unification of global standards and regulations and the transformation of technological achievements.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism released the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan for Culture and Tourism Development" and the "Fifteenth Five-Year Plan for Building a Tourism Power", proposing that by 2030, domestic residents will make 8.3 billion trips and spend a total of 7.7 trillion yuan. The article pointed out that although my country's tourism market is the largest in the world, with the number of trips and spending during the Spring Festival and May Day holidays reaching record highs, the cultural tourism industry still needs to be optimized in terms of pricing of transportation to scenic spots, online reservations for aging services, and the supply of inclusive products. By improving service quality, strengthening industry supervision, reducing travel costs, freeing up time and space, and eliminating facilities and technical barriers, we will make tourism a truly accessible and happy industry, so that every ordinary person can fairly enjoy the right to "poetry and distance".

The first batch of inbound exhibits of the 140th China Import and Export Fair cleared customs at Guangzhou Nansha Port. The goods came from Turkey, with a total of 84 pieces and a weight of 12.3 tons, marking the official start of the exhibition arrangement work. The Canton Fair will be held in three phases from October 15 to November 4, with an exhibition area of approximately 1.55 million square meters and 32,000 exhibiting companies.

The Miaoli County Government stated that if the managed factory site involves state-owned land, it can obtain legal use rights through multiple channels such as leasing, selling, exchanging, applying for development or establishing surface rights to facilitate the registration and subsequent application of specific factories.

Xiaomi-backed chipmaker Zhuhai Amicro Technology is preparing to begin premarketing for a Hong Kong IPO exceeding $100 million as early as this week, sources say, after passing its listing hearing with HKEX last week and aiming for a mid-October trading debut.

Cathay Pacific Airways has extended the suspension of passenger flights to Dubai and Riyadh until January 31, 2027, citing the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran. This marks the third postponement since the conflict began. Cargo services remain under review for resumption.