CATHAY PACIFIC AIRWAYS has won the coveted rights to fly between London and New York. In return Virgin Atlantic has gained approval to operate from HK to Sydney, opening up through flights from London in much the same total travelling time as alternative routing typically via Singapore, Bangkok and the Gulf. Besides the major British and US airlines, carriers such as Kuwait, Air India and even El Al have traffic rights through Heathrow, a throwback to the times when they could not operate non-stop to the US from their home base. Cathy still has to secure slots and EU approval but these are not seen as real problems although BMI is complaining that its proposed Heathrow ” Kennedy services are still grounded.
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