Coronavirus Causing Airlines to Suspend Service to Hong Kong

Two major airlines in the United States have announced they will suspend all flights to Hong Kong as a result of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak in China.

According to the Wall Street Journal, officials from American and United airlines announced they would be temporarily suspending all flights into and out of Hong Kong until February 20 due to a lack of demand.

Hong Kong reported its first coronavirus death Wednesday, with nearly two dozen cases confirmed in the region. In mainland China, the outbreak has killed at least 490 people and infected another 24,000.

United said the last flight to Hong Kong would be Wednesday, while the final journey back to the U.S. from the territory will be Friday. An airline spokesperson said the “dates are fluid as the situation continues to evolve.”

The decision to cut flights to Hong Kong comes as top U.S. carriers such as American, Delta and United temporarily suspended all service to mainland China after the Department of State raised its travel advisory to Level 4 due to the coronavirus outbreak and issued a “do not travel” warning.

American and United have canceled flights through March 28, while Delta suspended service through April 30.

Other airlines have been impacted by the coronavirus outbreak, as Cathay Pacific Airways officials asked the carrier’s 27,000 employees to take three weeks of unpaid leave due to the company’s ongoing financial crisis.

In addition, a new study also found that visits from Chinese nationals to the U.S. could drop by as much as 28 percent this year as a result of the viral outbreak.