Hong Kong puts off Covid flight ban
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As it eases Covid rules, Hong Kong has suspended a law that banned individual flights from bringing in passengers infected with the Covid-19 virus.
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Travelers wearing face masks queue at the check-in counters of the Hong Kong International Airport.
The long-standing flight route ban that penalized airlines for bringing in coronavirus patients and severely restricted travel into the city was revoked, on Thursday, by the new administration in Hong Kong on the grounds that it was "not very effective".
The once-bustling Hong Kong airport is now more or less an aviation graveyard as a result of the financial center's rigorous pandemic restrictions.
New city leader John Lee's government said, on Thursday, that the "circuit breaker" rule was being suspended to "achieve the most in fighting the pandemic with the minimum cost on the society".
"At the current stage, continued implementation of the 'circuit breaker' mechanism is not very effective in preventing imported cases," the government said.
"Large number of passengers will have their itineraries disrupted due to the mechanism, and as the supply of seats on planes and quarantine hotel rooms fall short, the social costs generated will be remarkably high," it added.
As long as Hong Kong's mandated seven-day hotel quarantine for all arrivals is in effect, traveling there will continue to be difficult.
The restriction, which was put in place last April, forbade airlines from flying the designated route for a set length of time if they brought in more than a few infected passengers. It was adopted by the previous city leader Carrie Lam.
During its one-year imposition, the penalty was altered from a two-week suspension to a shorter five-day sentence.
It is worth noting that Covid-19 cases are on the rise in Hong Kong, reaching their highest level since April.
