Hong Kong has requested Japan to withdraw a COVID-19 travel restriction that requires passenger flights from the financial hub to land at only four designated Japanese airports, saying the decision will impact about 60,000 passengers.
Amid a surge in the number of coronavirus infections in China, the government said on Tuesday that it will restrict departures and arrivals of direct flights connecting Japan with mainland China, Hong Kong and Macao to four airports — Narita, Haneda, Kansai and Chubu.
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government said,
Upon notification by the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau on December 27 that from tomorrow (December 30) onwards passenger flights from Hong Kong could only land at Narita Airport, Haneda Airport, Kansai Airport and Chubu Airport.
According to the HKSAR , the relevant airlines could not increase the number of passenger flights from Hong Kong to Japan, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government has been proactively liaising with the Japanese authorities and seriously requesting the Japanese authorities to rescind the restrictions concerned.
Japan has asked Cathay Pacific Airlines, Hong Kong Airlines and Hong Kong Express Airways to halt their flights connecting Hong Kong with New Chitose, Fukuoka and Naha airports.
The HKSAR Government noted the announcement by the Japanese Government today (December 29) that, in addition to the four aforementioned designated airports, passenger flights from Hong Kong will also be permitted to land at New Chitose Airport, Fukuoka Airport and Naha Airport, provided that the flights concerned do not carry passengers who have been to Mainland China within seven days prior to the flight.
Japan will require all travelers from mainland China and those who visited it within seven days to test for COVID-19 upon arrival starting Friday.
U.S. Embassy Tokyo, ACS Released its advisory.
The HKSAR Government said that it understands that the relevant arrangement is only applicable to passenger flights to Japan from Hong Kong and Macao. The HKSAR Government considers that the restriction on flights departing from Hong Kong is unreasonable and has requested the Japanese authorities to withdraw the restriction.
To avoid further inconvenience to the passengers, the HKSAR Government has reminded local airlines to inform the affected travellers of the latest flight arrangements as soon as possible.
However , the HKSAR Government will continue to request the Japanese authorities to rescind all discriminative restrictions on passenger flights departing from Hong Kong.
Cathay-Pacific released a statement saying ,
Following our continued discussions and cooperation with the Japanese authorities regarding the latest travel restrictions, we can confirm that Cathay Pacific will continue to operate flights to all airports in Japan, including Tokyo (Narita and Haneda), Osaka, Nagoya and Sapporo.
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