More international flights grounded over COVID-19 cases
An Iberia Airbus 320 airliner
Several international flights to Shanghai have been suspended for two weeks by China's civil aviation regulator following an increasing number of imported COVID-19 cases.
China Eastern Airlines' Flight MU588 from New York to Shanghai, Spanish carrier Iberia's Flight IB2821 from Madrid to Shanghai, and Ethiopian Airlines' Flight ET684 from Addis Ababa to Shanghai will be put on hold from January 3.
A total of 18 passengers on these flights tested positive on December 14 at the Shanghai Pudong International Airport, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said.
The CAAC has asked the airlines to work together with local consulates to appease the travelers and offer refund services.
About 60 COVID-19 cases have been imported to Shanghai via international flights at Pudong airport since last Friday.
On Tuesday, eight new imported patients were reported in Shanghai. All of them were Chinese returning from the Democratic Republic of Congo, the United States, the United Arab Emirates and Canada.
The CAAC launched its suspension mechanism for international passenger flights in June 2020, and updated the policy in December last year to further contain the spread of coronavirus.
A flight suspension is extended from one week to two if the number of passengers testing positive reaches five. The suspension lasts for four weeks if the number reaches 10.
If all of an airline's inbound passengers test negative three weeks in a row, it will be allowed to increase its flights to two per week.
