US airline groups suspend flights to Hong Kong
Following Hong Kong reporting its first coronavirus death on Tuesday (4 February), American Airlines Group and United Airlines have announced that they will be suspending all flights to and from the city
Both American Airlines and United Airlines are to halt all flights to and from Hong Kong until 20 February. American Airlines has already enforced the ban, while United Airlines’ last US flight to Hong Kong will depart San Francisco on Wednesday. This means that no US carriers will be flying passenger flights to Hong Kong after this week.
In addition, United Airlines announced on Monday that it will be moving up its suspension of US-bound flights from mainland China by one day to Tuesday, while United Airlines asserted that it still plans to resume flights to and from China on 28 March.
According to flight information firm OAG, due to 30 airlines halting services, there were over 25,000 fewer flights operated to, from and within China this week compared to two weeks ago.
No doubt, this will have a knock-on effect on claims numbers for the insurance and travel industries, the scale of which remain to be seen.
Robyn Bainbridge
Robyn Bainbridge edits the International Hospitals & Healthcare Review and is a writer and copy-editor for both ITIJ and AirMed&Rescue. Six years a freelance writer, she enjoys injecting a fresh take on a tired topic and is a keen advocate of sustainable tourism. She also has over 15 species of plants in her living room.