The Japanese government on Tuesday asked three Hong Kong airlines to halt their flights to Sapporo, Fukuoka and Naha, as it seeks to limit arrivals amid an explosion of Covid-19 cases in China.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan would require all travellers from the mainland to take Covid-19 tests on arrival from Friday.
It would also only allow direct flights from mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau to land at four airports – Narita, Haneda, Kansai and Chubu – and had requested Japanese airlines not to increase such flights.
Hong Kong’s flagship airline Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong Airlines and Hong Kong Express Airways had been asked to suspend their flights to the three destinations from Friday.