Vietnam Airlines, Jetstar Pacific cut China flights

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines will suspend routes between Vietnamese localities and China’s Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen cities starting February 4. It will stop flying to and from China’s Chengdu starting February 5, and Macau starting February 6.

The airline will also suspend flights on the Hanoi-Hong Kong route from February 6 and reduce the number of flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Hong Kong from 10 to 7 per week starting the same day.

It will disinfect all aircraft upon returning to Vietnam from China to prevent the spread of 2019-nCoV, which originated in Wuhan City of Hubei Province in mainland China.

Jetstar Pacific, the budget carrier of Vietnam Airlines, will stop operating flights on the Hanoi-Hong Kong route starting February 6, Hanoi-Guangzhou starting February 9 and HCMC- Guangzhou starting February 11.

Passengers who wish to fly between the mentioned destinations before the suspension can change dates free of charge or ask for a refund from both airlines.

Budget carrier Vietjet had earlier announced that it will suspend all China flights starting Saturday.

Over 30 airlines in the world have suspended all or certain flights to China in the wake of nCoV, which as of Saturday had killed 259 people in the country.

As of Friday, Vietnam had quarantined 97 people, of whom 32 remain isolated pending test results, according to the Ministry of Health.

As of Saturday morning, the country has recorded six confirmed cases of infection: two Chinese nationals, and four Vietnamese, including three returning from Wuhan, and a female hotel receptionist who has caught the coronavirus infection from the two Chinese nationals presently quarantined in Saigon.