Dragonair, owned by Cathay Pacific, will suspend its Calcutta-Hong Kong flight from March 9 to 28 because of “challenges and disruptions to travel” following the coronavirus outbreak in China, airline sources said on Tuesday.
The drop in passenger count because of the coronavirus scare has also prompted IndiGo to decide to withdraw one of its two daily flights between Calcutta and Bangkok, sources in the airline said.
“The flight is likely to be withdrawn in a couple of weeks,” a source at IndiGo said.
Cathay Pacific on Tuesday sent mails to tour operators informing them about the suspension of the Calcutta-Hong Kong Dragonair flight. The airline operates six flights in a week on the route.
“The last few weeks have seen many challenges and disruptions to travel in Hong Kong due to the coronavirus,” the letter written by Mark Sutch, regional general manager, South Asia, Middle East and Africa, Cathay Pacific, said.
“Globally, Cathay Pacific is reducing its overall capacity by 40 per cent in the coming months and this will include a temporary suspension of Kolkata from 9th of March until 28th of March. If there is further impact to flights operating out of India over the upcoming weeks and months, we will keep you updated.”
Many passengers from Calcutta fly Dragonair from Hong Kong to the US, Japan and Australia.
Several flights from Calcutta to southeast Asia have been withdrawn because of a decline in the number of passengers following the outbreak of the coronavirus.
IndiGo’s flight between Calcutta and Guangzhou in China will remain suspended till June.
China Eastern Airlines, too, has suspended its flights between Calcutta and Kunming in China.
“There are huge cancellations on all southeast Asia sectors. These destinations are very popular for short holidays but nobody is booking now,” said Anil Punjabi, chairman, east, Travel Agents Federation of India.
Tour operators said fliers were also calling up to cancel or rebook their tickets if their journey involved a stopover in any city in China or in any other country in its vicinity.
Calcutta-based businessman Inderjit Singh is planning to book a ticket for his 86-year-old father Avtar Singh to Sydney. He had initially thought of booking a Dragonair ticket towards the end of March or the first week of April.
“Today, I heard from my travel agent that the flight will be suspended. In any case I don’t want to send my father on a flight that will have a stopover for a few hours in any southeast Asian country. So, I have asked the travel agent to book a ticket to Sydney through Delhi,” he said.
