Flight suspension rules given clearance to boost foreign exchange
An aircraft lands at Pudong Airport.
China's civil aviation authority loosened its flight suspension mechanism from Sunday to boost cross-border exchanges amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the "optimized rule," an inbound international flight will be suspended for a week, rather than two as previously, if imported COVID-19 cases on board reaches five or 4 percent of the total number of the passengers.
The flight will be put on hold for two weeks, if the number of imported infections reaches 8 percent of the travelers on board, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said.
"The adjustment aims to balance COVID-19 prevention and economic and social development, as well as promote cross-border exchanges and cooperation," the CAAC said.
The administration launched its suspension mechanism for international passenger flights in June 2020 and updated the policy in December 2020 to further contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The previous rule stipulated that a flight will be suspended for two weeks if the number of passengers testing positive reaches five. The suspension lasts for four weeks if the number reaches 10.
As a major hub for inbound overseas flights, Shanghai has reported no local COVID-19 cases for three days in a row.
The city's last medium-risk area in Yangpu's Changhai Road Subdistrict was downgraded after midnight Saturday, marking a key milestone in the city's arduous fight against the virus since March.
However, the city reported three imported confirmed cases and eight imported asymptomatic infections on Saturday, according to the Shanghai Health Commission.
So far, of all the 4,953 imported cases in Shanghai, 4,875 have been discharged upon recovery and 78 are still hospitalized.
