Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. will more than double its flights to mainland China to 61 return services a week from Jan. 14 following the easing of Covid travel restrictions.

Cathay aims to operate over 100 return flights a week by March, it said in a statement Thursday. The airline currently operates 27 flights a week from Hong Kong to the mainland, as well as 50 from the mainland to Hong Kong. 

Cathay was hit particularly hard by the pandemic, which left Hong Kong largely cut off from the rest of the world and saddled the carrier with record losses as it operated at just a tiny fraction of its usual capacity. 

The company expects to be at about 70% of pre-pandemic capacity by the end of this year and return to pre-crisis levels by the end of 2024.