Return of coronavirus in Beijing threatens to derail Chinese airlines’ recovery as 1,255 flights cancelled amid tighter travel restrictions
- About two thirds of flights in and out of the capital were cancelled on Wednesday as authorities raced to contain a potential second wave
- The flare-up of the pandemic at a food market could affect Air China, China Southern, China Eastern and Hainan Airlines the most, say experts
More than 1,000 flights in and out of two major airports in Beijing were cancelled on Wednesday as the authorities moved to curb the spread of a possible second wave of deadly coronavirus infections.
Some 1,255 flights that had been due to take off or land at Beijing Daxing International Airport and Beijing Capital International Airport on Wednesday were cancelled, about two thirds of the day’s total inbound and outbound traffic, according to data from Flight Master. The figure was also being reported on the Communist Party’s Global Times website.
The move to reimpose restrictions on air travel risks derailing the recovery of China’s domestic aviation market, which has seen the most impressive rebound among international peers since the pandemic outbreak, analysts said.
Beijing market coronavirus cases rise to 137 as restrictions return to city
“The return of the pandemic in Beijing brings a new shock to the domestic aviation industry,” said Lin Zhijie, an expert at the official Aviation Think Tank. “In recent days, the number of flights had fallen by about 20 per cent. Now Beijing has upgraded the restrictions and is requiring people to prove they’ve been tested for the virus before they leave, it will drop by another 20 per cent.”
The flight cancellations came after Beijing raised its emergency response level back to II from III on Tuesday night as new infections of the potentially lethal virus climbed to 137 since Thursday. The new outbreak has been traced to the Xinfadi wholesale food centre in the city where thousands of tons of vegetables, fruit and meat are traded everyday.
Residents of counties and streets that have been identified as medium- to high-risk are prohibited from leaving the city, while everyone else is encouraged not to leave unless absolutely necessary.
All neighbourhoods require check points, where the temperature of every visitor and resident must be taken.
Flight bookings have remained low, and demand for long-haul travel is still close to zero, forcing airlines to pin their hopes on the recovery of domestic routes.
“The domestic market has been the ‘golden goose’ for China-based airlines while the recovery outlook for the international market is still unclear,” said Qi Qi, an associate professor at Guangzhou Civil Aviation College. “But now that hope is facing shocks again.”
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The impact of Covid-19 far exceeds that of Sars and the financial crisis, the International Air Transport Association said on Tuesday night in a call. Air traffic slumped 95 per cent during April, the lowest point since the outbreak of the pandemic.
“But the national aviation transportation market is still strong,” Qi noted. “Even though the outbreak has had a big impact on the aviation market in Beijing,”
Qi said Air China and Hainan Airlines wold be most affected as their major bases are in Beijing. Lin said the country’s three largest carriers – Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines – would be hit hardest as their market shares in Beijing are the largest.
Stocks of major Chinese airlines declined on Wednesday. Air China, the country’s flagship carrier, dropped 0.8 per cent in Hong Kong to HK$4.97 (US$0.64) and 1.1 per cent to 6.57 yuan (US$0.93) in the mainland as of 2.05pm. China Southern Airlines, which operates the largest fleet, declined 1.4 per cent to HK$3.63 in Hong Kong and 1 per cent to 5.13 yuan in Shanghai. China Eastern Airlines shed 2 per cent to HK$2.92 in Hong Kong and fell 0.7 per cent to 4.26 yuan on the mainland. Hainan Airlines slid 1.9 per cent to 1.56 yuan.
