New | Shenzhen airport punished for poor handling of flight delays that caused angry passengers to misbehave

China’s civil aviation authority has sternly censured Shenzhen airport and two airlines operating in it over their poor management of large-scale flight delays.

The Civil Aviation Administration said on its website on Monday that as punishment, it would stop accepting the Shenzhen Baoan International Airport’s applications for new flight routes, to increase flights and offer air charter services.

The penalties, which took effect this month, will last until the end of the year, it said.

The administration also named China United Airlines and Shenzhen Airlines in its criticism.

Since the second half of last year, large-scale flight delays in Shenzhen had triggered several incidents with “significant social impact”, the authority said.

It gave the example of a four-hour delay of a China United Airlines flight departing Shenzhen for Beijing in May, during which a passenger opened the plane’s emergency door.