Astride its volcano, Cathay Pacific's A350-1000 order is one more important long term measure

Cathay Pacific is at the crossroads, sitting in the centre of its and the world's largest growth spurt, in Asia-Pacific and China specifically, but still planning how exactly it will access this market over the long-term, balancing passenger and cargo demand with schedule optimisation and whatever aircraft efficiency is listed on paper.

The Hong Kong carrier's order for 10 A350-1000 and conversion of 16 A350-900s to the -1000, announced at the 2012 Farnborough International Airshow, is an early decision, but probably only the start of long-term planning. While the carrier has nearly 90 aircraft on order, the majority are for replacement, not growth. On Cathay's agenda, and for which the the A350-1000 could fulfil, are opening new long-haul destinations, replacing large regional aircraft, replacing long-haul aircraft on thin routes and right-sizing some long-haul routes.

All of these are against a background of an aviation scene that will change dramatically over the remainder of this decade.