Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus... Korean Air to suspend and reduce flights on 12 routes to China starting from the 2nd of next month

The charter flight schedule for transporting Korean residents living in Wuhan, China has been delayed, and on the 30th, the flight schedule to Wuhan was displayed on the departure board at Terminal 2 of Incheon International Airport. / Yeongjongdo = Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] Korean Air announced on the 30th that it will suspend and reduce flights on 12 routes to China starting next month in response to the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia).

According to Korean Air, the suspended routes include a total of seven routes: Incheon to Huangshan, Zhangjiajie, Changsha, Kunming; Busan to Beijing, Nanjing; and Jeju to Beijing.

Five routes will have reduced flights: Incheon to Qingdao and Shenyang (from 14 flights per week to 7 flights per week), Incheon to Beijing (from 17 flights per week to 14 flights per week), and Busan to Qingdao and Shanghai (from 7 flights per week to 4 flights per week).

The suspension of the Incheon to Wuhan route will be extended until March 27.

Korean Air plans to minimize passenger inconvenience by providing alternative flights in advance, refunds and waiving penalties, and waiving fees for itinerary changes for customers who have booked or purchased tickets on the affected routes.

Meanwhile, Korean Air has formed an internal response team to prevent in-flight infections and is implementing measures across all areas. First, aircraft arriving from major cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Qingdao, and Guangzhou to Korea will be disinfected and sterilized upon every arrival. Additionally, aircraft operating in other regions of China will undergo additional disinfection as needed.

Starting from the 31st, on routes operating in China, disposable items will be used during in-flight meal service, and waste will be sealed and handled separately to minimize the risk of in-flight infection.

Furthermore, to ensure the safety of flight attendants, the ‘flight attendant layover’ practice on routes such as Kunming and Guangzhou will be temporarily suspended. Accordingly, reserve flight attendants who boarded at Incheon will work on the return flight.

A Korean Air official stated, "As the novel coronavirus continues to spread, we will make every effort in all areas to ensure passengers can travel safely by air."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.