Laurence Dollimore
BRITISH Airways, Ryanair and Lufthansa have cancelled hundreds of flights to Europe and Asia over the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
The BA cancellations consist of flights between London Heathrow and Italy, France, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland and New York’s JKF.
Meanwhile, the British carrier also cancelled flights between Gatwick and Italy, France and Albania, and London City connections to Italy and Germany.
Ryanair is cancelling up to 25% of flights on some routes, with Italy the hardest hit.
Lufthansa has cancelled almost all its flights between Italy.
Ryanair boss, Michael O’Leary said: “Our focus at this time is on minimising any risk to our people and our passengers.
“While we are heavily booked over the next two weeks, there has been a notable drop in forward bookings towards the end of Mar, into early Apr.
“It makes sense to selectively prune our schedule to and from those airports where travel has been most affected by the Covid-19 outbreak.
“This is a time for calm. We will make sensible cuts to our schedules over the comings weeks to reflect weaker bookings, and changing travel patterns.
“All affected customers will be advised of any schedule changes at least 14 days in advance. While 80% of people who contract Covid-19 suffer only mild symptoms, the risk of infection can be significantly reduced by frequent hand washing with soap and water.
“We will continue to comply fully with guidelines from National Governments, the WHO and EASA as they are updated on a regular basis. We will update the market in due course on any significant developments.”
