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Flight operation of Pak-China resumed after suspension due to coronavirus

Flight operation of Pak-China resumed after suspension due to coronavirus
February 3, 2020
ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Direct flight operation between China and Pakistan has been resumed on Monday after being temporarily suspended for few days due to the novel coronavirus. According to the reports, a private airlines’ flight Air China – carrying 61 Pakistanis including students stranded in Urumqi airport in China due to coronavirus outbreak – has reached new International Islamabad Airport after suspension of flight operation to the neighboring country. The Pakistanis among students were allowed to go to their homes after complete medical checkup. Meanwhile, the second flight, PK-745, will also be landed shortly and Special Assistant on Health Dr Zafar Mirza and Chinese ambassador are also present in the airport and they reviewed the screening process. Following the resumption of flights, two flights carrying Pakistanis arrived from China, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza confirmed. Zafar Mirza took his twitter and said, “We supervised implementation of Airport SOPs and I interviewed passengers.” The first — a Qatar Airlines flight — arrived from Doha, carrying 40 students. Health department staff conducted medical examinations of all the students at the Islamabad airport after which they were permitted to go home. A second flight — a China Southern Airlines flight CZ6007 — brought 69 passengers including 57 Pakistanis and 12 Chinese. Ahead of the flight arrivals, the premier's special assistant reviewed the arrangements for screening passengers at the airport. "At all airports, screening systems have been strengthened. The Pakistani government is prepared for any emergency situation," Mirza said, adding: The health department has the facilities for detecting coronavirus cases. In a brief statement, a spokesman of the Aviation Division said Pakistan has decided to resume the direct flight operation between the two countries. A day earlier, Special Assistant on National Health Dr Zafar Mirza said that Pakistan has now capability of diagnosing Coronarivus.  In his tweet on Sunday, the special assistant said, “Alhamdolilah, as of today we have now capability of diagnosing coronarivus in Pakistan. He also applauded the National Institute of Health (NIH) leadership and team for their hard work in securing the reagent for diagnosing. “Alhamdolilah, as of today we have now capability of diagnosing #Coronarivus in Pakistan. I want to applaud our NIH leadership and team for their hard work in securing the reagent for diagnosing,” he tweeted. In another tweet, Dr Zafar Mirza assured the families of Pakistani students in China that the government is working very hard to ensure their safety and wellbeing. “And we are very closely monitoring the situation,” he added. “To the families of the Pakistani students in China: we fully understand your anxiety. Rest assured that we are working very hard to ensure their safety & wellbeing. And we are very closely monitoring the situation,” he tweeted. On Friday, Pakistan halted flights to and from China with immediate effect, a civil aviation official said, as the death toll from a virus outbreak spreading in China mounted and the World Health Organization called it a global health emergency. “We are suspending flights to China until Feb 2,” additional secretary of aviation Abdul Sattar Khokhar told Reuters by phone, adding the situation would be reviewed after that date. He declined to comment on the reason for the closure. Some airlines including British Airways, have suspended flights to China due to warnings of the coronavirus outbreak.