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Reviews of Cathay Pacific from pilots and flight attendants: What is it like to work in Hong Kong’s airline?
Are you looking for your next airline? Read Cathy Pacific reviews and learn if this airline offers what you are looking for.
If you’re thinking about joining the crew of one of Asia’s most recognised airlines, you’ve probably already searched for reviews of Cathay Pacific and found a very mixed picture. Some describe the experience as a unique career springboard, while others warn that conditions aren’t what they seem from the outside. The reality, as almost always, lies somewhere in between.
In this article, you’ll find what pilots and cabin crew who have worked (or still work today) for this airline say about salaries, schedules, benefits, the working environment, and everything that doesn’t appear in the job advert.
At the end, we’ll compare what people inside the company say with what other airlines in the sector offer. After all, moving to Hong Kong to start an aviation career deserves clear and truthful information, not just corporate messaging.
Cabin crew reviews of Cathay Pacific
Knowing the views of cabin crew who work or have worked at Cathay Pacific will help you decide whether to send that CV you’ve spent so long perfecting. To help, we’ve gathered real experiences of every kind, so you can get the full picture.
Reviews of cabin crew salaries at Cathay Pacific
Salary is probably one of the most discussed topics among Cathay’s cabin crew. And not in an especially enthusiastic way.
The airline pays its cabin crew a salary ranging from $10,000 HK (approx. $1,280 US/€1,182.72) to $30,000 HK (approx. $3,750 US/€3,267) per month, although those consistently assigned to long-haul routes (to Europe, North America, or Australia) may earn close to $390,000 HK (approx. $50,000 US/€46,100) per year.
The problem is that the lower end of that range, especially for new joiners, clashes with one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in.
New crew members earn around $18,000 HK (approx. $2,300 US/€2,125) in base salary each month, plus between $8,000 HK (approx. $1,025 US/€944.28) and $15,000 HK (approx. $1,920 US/€1,640) in flight allowances, but they must pay for their own accommodation in Hong Kong, since the airline doesn’t provide housing for cabin crew.
One cabin crew member with several years at the company summed it up like this on Indeed:
“The company offers acceptable benefits, but the salary is very low. It isn’t enough to cover the cost of living.”
And another voice added:
“Poorly paid job. It’s easy to make friends among colleagues and get cheap tickets for travel. Apart from that, best avoid it.”
Seniority is the main factor that determines the final figure, since more experienced crew receive both a higher base salary and more favourable rosters. Flight hours also matter, because intercontinental routes generate extra cash allowances.
In short, the starting salary doesn’t offset Hong Kong’s cost of living for many crew members. While it improves over the years, you need to get through a fairly tight early stage.
Reviews of working hours at Cathay Pacific
Cathay’s schedules are exactly what you’d expect from a long-haul airline. Weeks with several nights away from home, rotations mixing Asian destinations with flights to Europe or America, and the usual uncertainty that comes with availability-based rostering systems.
Those with families or fixed commitments outside work warn that adapting to the rotating shift system can feel quite hard at first, especially if you aren’t used to night flights or being called to fly at short notice. In any case, this forms part of the advantages and disadvantages of being cabin crew and a pilot.
The positive point, according to several recent reviews, is that flight hours aren’t excessive at present. One cabin crew member shared on Indeed in October 2025:
“These days there aren’t too many flight hours, so you can have a good work-life balance. Also, at this company you learn to deliver five-star service.”
The airline offers an online platform where crew can check their roster, holidays, and payslips, which makes work life easier to organise. It also allows flight swaps with colleagues, although matching those changes isn’t always easy.
Benefits of working at Cathay Pacific
This is where Cathay Pacific scores the most points. Travel benefits are, by far, the most valued perk among the crew.
The airline offers discounted tickets for crew members themselves, their families, and friends on Cathay and on the group’s Oneworld partner airlines, with no limit on the number of tickets per year.
In addition, there is a retirement plan into which employees can put part of their salary, with interest accumulating until retirement age.
Hotels during international layovers are covered, as is transport between the airport and the accommodation. Medical insurance also forms part of the package, although several employees point out that cover has worsened compared with what the airline offered before the pandemic. One cabin crew member based in Los Angeles put it this way on Indeed:
“The benefits used to be very good, but they changed everything with the new contract. Even so, it’s still good for tickets, holidays, and sick leave.”
What is the working environment like?
Team spirit among crew members usually receives good feedback. Most reviews agree that colleagues are friendly and that life on board the aircraft, and during layovers, is generally positive. The problem appears when people talk about the relationship with management.
Several employees describe a management style that doesn’t value cabin crew and has made cost-cutting decisions that directly affected salaries and benefits, while executive pay only fell temporarily.
One cabin crew member with years at the company wrote this on Indeed without many euphemisms:
“Cathay Pacific used to be a good company. But management doesn’t value cabin crew at all. They only want to cut pay and demand more, while those who made the bad decisions remain untouched.”
There are also mentions of a very marked hierarchy: younger crew members point out that Hong Kong’s corporate culture implies a structure where the most senior people carry a lot of weight, and expressing a different view may get seen as disrespect.
On the other hand, the multicultural environment is something many people celebrate. Working with colleagues from dozens of different nationalities isn’t something you find at many airlines in the region.
Advantages and disadvantages of working as cabin crew at Cathay Pacific
As we saw clearly while collecting Cathay Pacific reviews, we found every kind of experience. So, to give you a quick snapshot, here’s a table with the main advantages and disadvantages.
| Pros | Cons |
| Network of more than 80 destinations across five continents | Low base salary compared with Hong Kong’s cost of living |
| Discounted tickets for employees, family, and friends | No company housing for crew members |
| In-house training with first-class service standards | Strong hierarchy: seniority carries a lot of weight in rostering |
| Medical insurance and retirement plan | Benefit cuts since the 2020 pandemic |
| Option to swap flights with colleagues | Frequent performance reviews that may feel draining |
| Multicultural and international environment | Little room for negotiation over contract changes |
Pilot reviews of Cathay Pacific
And what do Cathay Pacific pilots think? Well, in this case, the picture isn’t very different from that of cabin crew. In other words, people value certain non-financial benefits, while salaries, although dDnot bad, still don’t fully offset Hong Kong’s high cost of living, and the company has tended to apply cuts. Let’s look at all this in more detail:
Reviews of Cathay Pacific pilot salaries
Cathay pilots move within a wide salary range depending on rank.
Second officers, which is the entry-level category, earn from $585,000 HK per year (approx. $75,000 US/€68,913.75), with a minimum guarantee of 50 flight hours per month and a monthly allowance of $14,000 HK (approx. $1,787 US/€1,528.80).
Captains, at the opposite end, start from $1,112,500 HK per year (around $145,000 US/€123,000) with the same minimum hour guarantee and a monthly allowance of $28,000 HK (around $3,574 US/€3,031.54).
Overall, the average salary of a Cathay Pacific captain is around $235,000 US/€200,878 per year, a competitive figure, especially for long-haul operations on wide-body aircraft.
The problem, according to pilots who have shared their views, isn’t so much the numbers on paper but what happened to them in practice. An active captain describes on PilotsGlobal how salaries and benefits were cut by about 50% permanently, using the pandemic as justification, which led many experienced pilots to resign or retire early.
An active captain wrote on PilotsGlobal in 2024:
“Salaries and benefits: cut by around 50% permanently, using the pandemic as an excuse. The result was that many experienced pilots resigned or retired early.”
And on Indeed, another pilot put it into context:
“Working at the airline became less rewarding during the pandemic. Fortunately, they dismissed very few pilots, but we all suffered severe and permanent pay cuts, while management salaries only fell temporarily.”
On Glassdoor, pilots rate compensation and benefits at 2.9 out of 5, which sits 18.8% below the company’s general average. That isn’t an especially encouraging figure.
Reviews of working hours
As we mentioned earlier, Cathay’s rotations are typical of a long-haul airline, with several days away from home, night flights, and rostering that may change quite abruptly.
The pay-per-flight-hour system (introduced in the post-pandemic period) adds a layer of financial uncertainty to the issue of schedules.
PilotsGlobal describes unstable rosters caused by staff shortages and rapid expansion. The new productivity-based pay system encourages pilots to fly more hours to maintain income, which may compromise real rest between sectors.
One first officer described it in these words on PilotsGlobal:
“Unstable rostering and income, caused by staff shortages and over-ambitious expansion. The new hourly pay system creates huge month-to-month swings, which pushes pilots to stretch their health and rest limits to maintain salary.”
Standby days without flying are also a reality, and the option to swap flights with other colleagues exists, but it depends on availability.
Benefits for pilots
The non-financial benefits package remains one of the strongest reasons to join Cathay, even after the cuts.
Pilots get discounted tickets for themselves and their families, hotels and allowances covered during layovers, recurrent training paid by the airline, and full medical cover. There is also the possibility, although not guaranteed, of changing fleet or base as seniority increases.
On Glassdoor, pilots consistently point to travel benefits and medical cover as the strongest points, with comments such as: “Good health and travel benefits” or “The company treats employees fairly”, which appear regularly among those giving higher scores.
Training is another well-rated aspect. Cathay has a reputation for training its pilots rigorously, which makes a period at the airline a recognised asset in the industry.
Reviews of the working environment at Cathay Pacific
Here, the picture divides clearly. Relationships among crew members tend to be positive. The relationship with management, by contrast, is the most conflicted point in pilot reviews.
On Indeed, one pilot described the situation bluntly:
“The relationship between management and pilots is the worst I’ve seen in the whole industry. The aircraft are modern and well maintained, but that doesn’t offset working for a company where management can break a contract overnight and cancel every agreed condition.”
And another, on the same platform:
“Management seems to hate its pilots and seems to enjoy punishing individuals to intimidate the rest. The job itself is good, and frontline colleagues are excellent.”
The airline’s safety culture does receive positive ratings. Cathay is recognised in the sector for its emphasis on procedures and operational safety. The tension doesn’t come from the operation itself, but from corporate management.
One captain on PilotsGlobal, in a critical tone but without losing perspective, put it this way:
“Constant attack on working conditions. Constant demand for greater productivity. Management should recognise the quality of its employees and do something to retain them.”
And a former first officer with a more pragmatic view left this advice for future candidates:
“Large and modern aircraft, worldwide route network. Conditions are good enough to attract new pilots, but not to retain them. Join, build wide-body hours, and then go back to wherever you want to live.”
Advantages and disadvantages of working as a pilot at Cathay Pacific
Once again, here is a table with the pros and cons of working at Cathay Pacific, based on what pilots who work or have worked at the airline have said.
| Pros | Cons |
| Modern fleet (A350, A321neo, A330) | Permanent salary cuts since the pandemic |
| International route network that builds long-haul experience | Operational pressure from punctuality and cost reduction |
| Training recognised across the global aviation sector | Single base in Hong Kong, one of the most expensive cities in the world |
| Travel benefits for pilots and their families | Slow progression if the fleet doesn’t grow as expected |
| Medical cover and retirement plan | Strained relationship between pilots and management |
| Option to change fleet with seniority | Hourly pay system that creates monthly income variability |
Conclusions on reviews of working at Cathay Pacific
Having reviewed all these reviews of Cathay Pacific and considering how it compares to other airlines, what emerges is a picture of a company that, for decades, was a benchmark for high standards in the Asia-Pacific region, yet still carries the weight of its former glory without having fully rebuilt itself.
The contrast with Gulf airlines such as Emirates or Qatar Airways is striking. There, salaries are tax-free, company accommodation is provided, and remuneration packages have remained more stable. For a flight attendant or pilot who values financial stability over brand prestige, that comparison does not work in Cathay’s favour.
That said, there is one thing the airline does offer that few others can match: the chance to clock up hours on wide-body aircraft, fly long-haul routes in some of the most modern aircraft on the market, and do so from Hong Kong, which, despite its high cost of living, remains one of the best-connected hubs on the planet.
For a first officer looking to build up their intercontinental flight hours quickly, that has real value.
The atmosphere at work depends very much on the people you work with. If you’ve got a good team, the work can be very rewarding. If the schedule is tight and management isn’t listening, things get complicated. The key, according to many who have been there, is to be clear about what you want to achieve before you go in.
How to stay connected while working and travelling with Cathay Pacific
Working for an airline like Cathay Pacific means being on the move almost constantly: Hong Kong today, London tomorrow, Sydney next week.
For pilots and flight attendants who need to stay connected – whether to manage their finances, talk to their families or simply avoid disappearing from the digital map between flights – having a reliable internet connection at every destination is a practical necessity, not a luxury.
Holafly monthly plans are the perfect solution for this profile. There are two subscription plans (25 GB or unlimited data) that use eSIM technology. It is activated digitally, so there’s no need to find a physical SIM card in every country, and best of all, it covers more than 160 destinations around the world.
For someone whose itinerary takes them from Tokyo to Frankfurt via Vancouver, having a single solution that works in all those countries without having to switch SIM cards or rely on hotel Wi-Fi is a huge advantage.
Unlike traditional roaming plans, where the cost per megabyte skyrockets in destinations such as Japan or Australia, Holafly’s plans come at a fixed monthly price. For a crew member who spends between 15 and 20 days a month away from home, that model makes much more financial sense.
Activation is immediate. You set up the eSIM at home before you leave, and you’ll have a signal as soon as you land. No queues at the airport, no paperwork, no surprises on the bill.
Frequently asked questions about working at Cathay Pacific
The process can take between four and eight weeks from the online application to the final offer. This includes a language assessment, group interviews, an individual interview and a medical examination. Once the offer has been accepted, the initial training lasts between six and eight weeks in Hong Kong.
Yes, Cathay Pacific’s hub is Hong Kong International Airport. Both pilots and crew members must live there. The airline does not provide accommodation for cabin crew, which means they have to cover the cost of living in one of the most expensive cities in Asia.
There is a career progression structure, but the pace depends on seniority and the airline’s needs. For pilots, the progression from second officer to first officer and then to captain takes years and depends on the growth of the fleet. For cabin crew, positions such as cabin manager or purser also depend on availability and length of service with the company. Several employees point out that career progression is slow compared to other airlines in the area.
Fluency in English is essential for any role. For cabin crew, speaking Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean or any of the Southeast Asian languages (Indonesian, Malay, Filipino) is a clear competitive advantage, given that a large part of the route network is concentrated in the Asia-Pacific region.
The impact was considerable. The airline implemented pay cuts which, according to many employees, were presented as temporary but were made permanent. Some contracts were renegotiated on less favourable terms, and some of the staff at international bases were made redundant. Although business activity has recovered, conditions have not returned to pre-2020 levels for all sectors.
The answer depends on your preferences. For pilots looking to build up their long-haul flying hours and develop their careers with an airline that has a strong safety culture, this could be a strategic move. For cabin crew who prioritise salary stability over travel benefits, there are opportunities in the Gulf offering better financial terms. In any case, it is advisable to thoroughly review the terms of the contract before signing.
