又中又英︳Lost my loyalty

Lost my loyalty

Cathay Pacific is no longer the great airline it once was. It pains me to say this, but it is true. No great airline would suddenly cancel dozens of flights during a busy holiday period with short notice. Cathay did that during the Christmas and New Year period, throwing a monkey wrench into the works by ruining holiday plans for thousands of passengers. Most people book well ahead of big holidays to ensure they get flights and hotel rooms. Cathay put its reputation through the mill by suddenly cancelling so many flights.

To throw a monkey wrench into the works means to do something that spoils someone's plans. To put someone or something through the mill means to put it in a very difficult situation. Cathay has now said it will cancel at least a dozen flights a day until the end of February to make sure there are enough pilots during the Lunar New Year rush. How can it still claim to be a top airline? I have been a loyal Cathay passenger for many years even though its fares are higher than other airlines.

I was in the US during the pandemic. To avoid the Hong Kong quarantine, I spent months traveling to many US cities to see relatives. I always flew first class on Cathay partner airlines in the One World group. This enabled me to renew my Marco Polo Gold status just on US domestic flights even during the pandemic. I tried Eva Air business class from the US to Hong Kong a few months ago. The meals and service were far better than Cathay. Sorry to say Cathay may have lost my loyalty to Eva.

国泰航空已经不再像从前那样，是优秀的航空公司了。要这样说令我很难过，但确是事实。没有优秀的航空公司会在繁忙的假期期间，在临时通知之下突然取消数以十计的航班，但国泰在圣诞和新年期间就这样做了，打乱了许多人的计划（throwing a monkey wrench into the works），破坏数以千计的乘客的假期。大部分人都会在远早于大时大节之前就预订，确保能买到机位和酒店住宿。国泰取消这么多的航班，令其声誉大受打击（through the mill）。

To throw a monkey wrench into the works的意思是做一些事去捣乱、破坏别人的计划。To put someone or something through the mill是指令某人或某事落入非常艰难的处境或磨练之中。国泰现在已明言，直至二月底它将会每天取消十二个航班，以确保在农历新年高峰期有足够的机师。它又怎能仍自称是顶级的航空公司？我多年来一直都是国泰的忠实顾客，即使它的价格比其他航空公司要高。

在疫情期间我身处美国。为了避开香港的隔离措施，我花了好些月份到许多美国城市去探望我的亲属。我总是搭乘国泰于「寰宇一家」联盟其他成员航空公司的头等舱。这令我即使在疫情期间，只消搭乘美国本土机，仍能为我的马可孛罗金卡续期。几个月前，我试搭长荣航空的商务舱，从美国回港，它的食物和服务远远比国泰的要好。抱歉一句，国泰或已失掉我的忠诚，输给长荣了。

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Michael Chugani褚简宁
中译：七刻