Beijing Cancels 1,255 Flights at Two Airports... Massive Flight Cancellations

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Park Sun-mi] As Beijing city has raised its COVID-19 response level from Level 3 to Level 2, a large number of flights to and from Beijing are being canceled consecutively.

On the 17th, China Huanqiu reported that as of 9:10 a.m. (local time), a total of 1,255 flights have been canceled at the two airports in Beijing, including Beijing Capital International Airport and Daxing International Airport. Of these, 615 flights departing from Beijing and 640 flights arriving in Beijing were canceled, with cancellation rates of 67.14% and 68.38%, respectively.

The mass cancellation of flights came as the authorities strengthened quarantine measures due to the spread of COVID-19 in Beijing. The Beijing municipal government raised the COVID-19 response level from Level 3 to Level 2 the day before and required all people leaving Beijing to submit a negative nucleic acid test certificate issued within the last 7 days. The Beijing city government also requested citizens to refrain from unnecessary travel outside Beijing.

Airlines are waiving fees for flight cancellations and changes in response to the strengthened measures. Chinese railway authorities have also decided to waive fees for train ticket refunds due to enhanced quarantine measures.

Avoidance of Beijing is also occurring in several regions of China. Some bus terminals have suspended bus services to Beijing since the 16th for passenger safety reasons. Two terminals in Tianjin, located near Beijing, have also suspended or postponed the resumption of bus routes to Beijing. Several cities, including Heilongjiang Province and Macau, are imposing 2 to 3 weeks of quarantine on people who have visited Beijing.

Meanwhile, according to the National Health Commission of China, as of midnight, 31 new confirmed cases were reported in Beijing. The number of confirmed cases linked to the Xinfadi market, a wholesale agricultural and aquatic products market in Beijing, has increased to 137 over six days. In addition to the 137 confirmed patients currently receiving treatment in hospitals, there are also 12 asymptomatic infected individuals under medical observation.

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