Archive for ‘Virgin Australia’

21/02/2020

Airlines suspend China flights due to coronavirus outbreak

(Reuters) – Airlines have been suspending flights to China or modifying service in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Below are details (in alphabetical order):

AIRLINES THAT HAVE CANCELLED ALL FLIGHTS TO MAINLAND CHINA

** American Airlines – Extends suspension of China and Hong Kong flights through April 24

** Air France – Said on Feb.6 it would suspend flights to and from mainland China for much of March

** Air India – Suspends flights to Shanghai, Hong Kong until June 30

** Air Seoul – The South Korean budget carrier suspended China flights from Jan. 28 until further notice.

** Air Tanzania – Tanzania’s state-owned carrier, which had planned to begin charter flights to China in February, postponed its maiden flights.

** Air Mauritius – Suspended all flights to China and Hong Kong

** Austrian Airlines – until end-February.

** British Airways – Jan. 29-March 31.

** Delta Airlines – Feb. 2-April 30

** Egyptair suspended flights on Feb, 1, but on Feb. 20 said it would resume some flights to and from China starting next week.

** El Al Israel Airlines – Said on Feb. 12 it would suspend its Hong Kong flights until March 20 and reduce its daily flights to Bangkok. It suspended flights to Beijing from Jan. 30 to March 25 following a health ministry directive.

** Iberia Airlines – The Spanish carrier extended its suspension of flights from Madrid to Shanghai, its only route, from Feb. 29 until the end of April.

** JejuAir Co Ltd – Korean airline to suspend all China routes starting March 1

** Kenya Airways – Jan. 31 until further notice.

** KLM – Will extend its ban up to March 28

** Lion Air – All of February.

** LOT – Extends flight suspension until March 28

** Oman and Saudia, Saudi Arabia’s state airline, both suspended flights on Feb. 2 until further notice.

** Qatar Airways – Feb. 1 until further notice.

** Rwandair – Jan. 31 until further notice.

** Scoot, Singapore Airlines’ low-cost carrier – Feb. 8 until further notice.

** United Airlines – Feb. 5-April 23. Service to Hong Kong suspended Feb. 8-April 23.

** Vietjet and Vietnam Airlines – Suspended flights to the mainland as well as Hong Kong and Macau Feb. 1-April 30, in line with its aviation authority’s directive.

AIRLINES THAT HAVE CANCELLED SOME CHINA FLIGHTS/ROUTES OR MODIFIED SERVICE

** Air Canada – Extended the suspension of its flights to Beijing and Shanghai until March 27. It also suspended its Toronto to Hong Kong flights from March 1 to March 27, but its Vancouver to Hong Kong route remains active. [bit.ly/39zgmI0]

** Air China – Said on Feb. 12 it will cancel flights to Athens, Greece, from Feb. 17 to March 18

** Air China – State carrier said on Feb. 9 it will “adjust” flights between China and the United States.

** Air New Zealand – Suspended Auckland-Shanghai service Feb. 9-March 29. Reduced capacity on Shanghai route throughout April and Hong Kong route throughout April and May.

** ANA Holdings – Suspended routes including Shanghai and Hong Kong from Feb. 10 until further notice.

** Cathay Pacific Airways – Plans to cut a third of its capacity over the next two months, including 90% of flights to mainland China. It has encouraged its 27,000 employees to take three weeks of unpaid leave in a bid to preserve cash.

** Emirates and Etihad – The United Arab Emirates, a major international transit hub, suspended flights to and from China, except for Beijing.

** Finnair – Cancelled all flights to mainland China and decreased the number of flights to Hong Kong until March 28.

** Hainan Airlines – Suspended flights between Budapest, Hungary, and Chongqing Feb. 7-March 27.

** Korean Air Lines Co. – The national flag carrier suspended eight routes to China and reduced services on nine Chinese routes between Feb. 7 and 22.

** Philippine Airlines – Cut the number of flights between Manila and China by over half.

** Qantas Airways – Suspended direct flights to China from Feb. 1. The Australian national carrier halted flights from Sydney to Beijing and Sydney to Shanghai between Feb. 9-March 29.

** Royal Air Maroc – The Moroccan airline suspended direct flights to China Jan. 31-Feb. 29. On Jan. 16, it had launched a direct air route with three flights weekly between its Casablanca hub and Beijing.

** Russia – All Russian airlines, with the exception of national airline Aeroflot, stopped flying to China from Jan. 31. Small airline Ikar will also continue flights between Moscow and China. All planes arriving from China will be sent to a separate terminal in the Moscow Sheremetyevo airport. Aeroflot reduced the frequency of flights to Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou until Feb. 29.

** Nordic airline SAS – Extended its suspension of flights to Shanghai and Beijing until March 29.

** Singapore Airlines – Suspended or cut capacity on flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Xiamen and Chongqing, some of which are flown by regional arm SilkAir.

** UPS – Cancelled 22 flights to China because of the virus and normal manufacturing closures due to the Lunar New Year holiday.

** Virgin Atlantic – Extended its suspension of daily operations to Shanghai until March 28.

** Virgin Australia – Said it will withdraw from the Sydney-Hong Kong route from March 2 because it was “no longer a viable commercial route” due to growing concerns over the virus and civil unrest in Hong Kong.

Source: Reuters

07/02/2020

Hundreds more Hong Kong flights to be cancelled as coronavirus hammers air travel

  • Cathay Pacific is latest to wield axe, while Taiwan’s new restrictions on visitors from Hong Kong is another blow
  • More cancellations expected in the coming days as spread of deadly virus continues
The air industry in Hong Kong and beyond has been thrown into disarray by the coronavirus outbreak. Photo: Reuters
The air industry in Hong Kong and beyond has been thrown into disarray by the coronavirus outbreak. Photo: Reuters

Hundreds more Hong Kong flights are set to be dropped as the floodgates open on airlines cancelling services during the city’s fight against the coronavirus.

Carriers based in Asia, Australia, South Africa and Middle East revealed on Friday morning and the previous night they would cut all or some of their flights to the city.

Cathay Pacific is the latest to wield the axe, announcing on Friday afternoon new suspensions of major Hong Kong routes to London, New York and across mainland China because of the virus.

Flights running on the busy route between Hong Kong and Taiwan’s capital Taipei are subject to major cuts. Photo: Shutterstock
Flights running on the busy route between Hong Kong and Taiwan’s capital Taipei are subject to major cuts. Photo: Shutterstock
The contagion, which started in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, has infected more than 31,400 people, mostly in mainland China, killing more than 635. In Hong Kong, 24 people have been infected, one of those fatally, as of Friday afternoon.

Passengers abandoning travel plans en masse have been compounded by the introduction of entry restrictions across the world against recent visitors to mainland China, some targeting those who had been to Hong Kong.

Destinations suspended by Cathay Pacific until March 28 include London Gatwick, Rome, Washington DC, Newark, Male, Davao, Clark, Jeju and Taichung.

All mainland cities with the exception of Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Xiamen would also be dropped over that period. The company said the decision was made “in view of the novel coronavirus outbreak and the subsequent drop in market demand”.

Hong Kong airport to segregate all flights to and from mainland China

7 Feb 2020

It followed Cathay Pacific Group revealing earlier this week there would be a 30 per cent reduction of flights across its worldwide schedule, as well as a 90% cut of mainland flights.

Budget carrier HK Express, controlled by Cathay, said on Thursday it would scrap 82 flights between February 12 and March 26, mostly to destinations such as Seoul and Osaka.

Hong Kong Airlines (HKA) at the same time revealed it would gradually impose even deeper cuts to flights it operated in mainland China and the rest of Asia until March 28.

The ailing carrier will suspend 10 routes and reduce flights on a further 15, amounting to an estimated 128 flights a week being axed. HKA has already cut 214 mainland Chinese flights between January 30 until February 11.

As Taiwan’s new restrictions took effect on Friday – ordering the home or hotel quarantine of anyone entering the self-ruled island who had visited Hong Kong or Macau within the previous 14 days – carriers based there slashed their schedules.

China Airlines would go from running 18 daily Hong Kong flights to just two from next week until March 28, according to Airline Route data published on Thursday.

Eva Air would switch from more than 11 daily flights to fewer than four a day for the rest of the month.

As health professionals treat coronavirus patients, global search for cures and vaccines accelerates
Eighty flights operate between Hong Kong and Taipei every week, a journey that regularly tops tables ranking the world’s busiest. But under the cuts to come more than half have already been scrapped.
Outside Asia, two airlines on Thursday cut ties with Hong Kong. The struggling Virgin Australia blamed the coronavirus and the anti-government protests that have gripped Hong Kong since June.
It concluded that “current circumstances demonstrate that Hong Kong is no longer a commercially viable route”.
The near-bankrupt South African Airways (SAA) has cancelled its route from Johannesburg amid a wholesale restructuring of the state-owned business. SAA had suspended flying to Hong Kong after November 21 last year amid the city’s civil unrest.
Hong Kong Airlines to axe 400 jobs as coronavirus adds to carrier’s cash woes
7 Feb 2020

Meanwhile, American Airlines said on Thursday it would restart flights between Dallas Fort Worth and Hong Kong on February 21, while Hong Kong’s Airport Authority extended the cancellation of its Los Angeles flight to the city until March 27.

The US carrier warned its schedules were subject to an ongoing “review”. Currently there is no US carrier flying to Hong Kong International Airport after United Airlines also withdrew all services until February 20.

Among the Middle East carriers, Emirates was halving its four daily Airbus A380 flights to Hong Kong from next week until March 28. Etihad is also making minor adjustments, Airline Route data showed on Thursday.

Source: SCMP

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