MOSCOW, March 1. /TASS/. Russia has limited air service to South Korea due to the spread of a new type of coronavirus in that country. From March 1, only Aeroflot and Korean Air will operate flights between the two countries. This decision was made by the operational headquarters to combat the spread of coronavirus.
Earlier flights to South Korea from Russia were carried out also by S7, Aurora and Yakutia airlines. These three airlines can operate charter flights to return passengers home. The airlines can carry only citizens of the Republic of Korea from Russia to South Korea and citizens of the member states of the Eurasian Economic Union on flights from South Korea to Russia.
On Saturday, the Yonhap news agency reported about 594 new cases of coronavirus infection in South Korea. Thus, to date, 2,931 cases of infection have been registered in the republic.
According to the Association of Russian Tour Operators, as of February 26, there were about 1,200 Russian organized tourists in South Korea. Earlier, a representative with S7 told TASS that it is planned to carry out charter flights between Russia and South Korea at least until mid-March: more than 10,000 passengers need to come back home.
South Korea has become the third state Russia decided to limit flight connection with. Now a similar restriction applies to China and Iran. All flights of Aeroflot and national carriers of other countries are served only at terminal F at the Sheremetyevo airport. The airport transferred other international flights to other terminals.
Moreover, from March 1, all flights arriving arrival from Italy will be serviced at terminal F.
On December 31, 2019, the Chinese authorities reported to the World Health Organization about an outbreak of pneumonia of unknown etiology in Wuhan, an economic and industrial megalopolis with a population of 12 million. As of today, more than 50 countries and territories, including Russia, have reported confirmed coronavirus cases.
The World Health Organization declared the new coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, characterizing it as an epidemic with multiple locations. According to the latest reports, over 79,200 cases of patients infected with the novel coronavirus have been confirmed in China and other countries. The virus’ death toll has hit 2,835, yet more than 39,000 patients have recovered from the disease.