The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) suspended Air China (CA, Beijing Capital) service from Beijing Capital to Moscow Sheremetyevo for one week after more than five passengers on one flight tested positive for COVID-19.

The regulator said more than five passengers arriving in China on July 4, 2020, tested positive for the disease. In accordance with the Chinese rules on the prevention of the spread of the pandemic, any flight with more than five COVID-positive passengers triggers an automatic week-long ban for the service. If the number of sick passengers exceeds ten, the ban lasts for four weeks.

The ban for Beijing-Moscow flight CA910 entered into force on July 13, 2020.

The Chinese airline operates the route using a mix of B777-300(ER)s and A330-300s with some flights operated as cargo-only. Passenger services inbound to Beijing must first land at another Chinese airport (Qingdao Jiaodong, Shenyang Taoxian International or Zhengzhou) for passenger clearance.

So far, the CAAC has only activated its COVID-related automated suspension of an international route in regard to US-Bangla Airlines (BS, Dhaka).