Aircrew members in Hong Kong who recently flew to Britain must self-isolate for three weeks, throwing flights on the route into further disarray

The requirement comes after the city banned arrivals from Britain in a bid to keep out a more transmissible strain of coronavirus recently discovered there

One industry insider described the situation as a ‘shambles’, saying local officials had ‘no idea’ of the complications they were creating for airlines

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Aircrew who recently flew to Britain will now have to self-isolate for three weeks. Photo: Nora Tam

Published: 4:53pm, 22 Dec 2020Updated: 9:47am, 28 Jan 2021

All aircrew in Hong Kong who have been to Britain in the past 14 days have been ordered to self-isolate in designated hotels for three weeks, according to a note to airlines, as the city imposes tough new measures in a bid to prevent a more transmissible strain of coronavirus from entering the community.

Passenger and cargo airlines are weighing the potential knock-on impacts for flight operations as they scramble to comply with the new rules, the Post understands, with the restrictions having the potential to halt all non-stop passenger flights to and from Britain, though freight carriers may face a shorter-term impact.

The tighter requirements match the emergency measures announced on Monday by the Hong Kong government, which banned passenger flights from Britain, along with any travellers from other countries who had spent at least two hours there in the past 14 days.

The measures, which prompted Cathay Pacific to axe all flights on the route up to January 10, came as governments around the world suspended flights to Britain after a new coronavirus variant that is 75 per cent more transmissible was found to be spreading rapidly across London and the country’s southeast.

Cathay Pacific has cancelled all flights to and from Britain until January 10. Photo: Reuters

As of Monday evening, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic had planned to keep offering a passenger service as usual from Hong Kong to Britain, but to switch to cargo-only flights running in the other direction.