Only Russian Airlines Subjected To Ban On Charter Flights From China -Air Transport Agency

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th February, 2020) The ban on charter flights between Russia and China, introduced since Friday over the outbreak of a new coronavirus (COVID-19), is affecting only Russian airlines, not Chinese ones, Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia) said.

"Russian airlines have been preliminarily notified that starting from the midnight, February 14, 2020 [21:00 GMT on Thursday] a temporary ban on charter flights to and from China, carried out by Russian airlines, will be in place. The ban on charter flights for Chinese airlines has not been imposed," Rosaviatsia said in a statement.

According to the agency, 228 Russian citizens are waiting for an opportunity to use alternative flights or refunds.

COVID-19 was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December and has since spread to more than 25 countries. So far, the virus has infected some 60,000 people worldwide and killed over 1,350 people.

In late January, the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency in light of the epidemic.