Coronavirus: China Southern Airlines resumes flights to Kenya
Two weeks after China Southern Airlines suspended its direct flights to Nairobi amid the rising cases of the coronavirus, the airline on Wednesday resumed flights to and from Kenya.
The flight touched down at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) with 239 passengers with the government saying that the passengers were screened on board and have being advised to “self-quarantine for 14 days” according to a statement from the Health Ministry.
#COVIDー19 UPDATE. Kenyans are advised against non – essential travel to countries experiencing the outbreak @WHOKenya @citizentvkenya @radiomaisha @KEMRI_Kenya @KNH_hospital @radiomaisha @KBCChannel1 @BreakingNewsKE @GhettoRadio895 @BBCNews @ReutersAfrica @ntvkenya @KTNNewsKE pic.twitter.com/gU0XjL9xuy
— Ministry of Health (@MOH_Kenya) February 26, 2020
The airline had initially suspended travel reservations on the carrier till the end of June 2020 and be reviewed on March 28, 2020.
On Monday, the carrier resumed over 2,100 domestic flights amid the epidemic, according to the company.
The flights were mainly from southwest, central and southern China to first-tier cities of Guangzhou, Shenzhen and east China.
China Southern Airlines Company Limited is an airline headquartered in Baiyun District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China.
It ranks among China’s “Big Three” airlines, alongside Air China and China Eastern Airlines.
It is also the world’s seventh-largest airline measured by passengers carried, as well as Asia’s largest airline in fleet size, revenue, and passengers carried.
In January, Kenya Airways suspended all its flights to Guangzhou, China after patients started dying from coronavirus.
The national carrier in a statement said the move follows the outbreak of coronavirus that has left thousands infected.
The national carrier had come under pressure to suspend its flights to China in the wake of continued widespread of the coronavirus.