(Adds detail, background)
LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters) - British Airways said on Thursday
that all its flights to mainland China had been cancelled for a
month, in a further sign of the impact that the outbreak of a
new coronavirus is having on global travel.
A spokeswoman said all flights to Beijing and Shanghai had
been suspended until the end of February.
BA's suspension of flights began on Wednesday, but initially
it had only been in place until Friday while the airline
assessed the situation.
Fears over the spread of the flu-like virus, which
originated in the central city of Wuhan, are growing as the
death toll rose to 170 and countries warned their citizens over
travel to China.
Britain's Foreign Office on Tuesday advised against "all but
essential" travel to mainland China.
Direct BA flights to Hong Kong are not affected.
BA's move followed some flight cancellations to China by
U.S. airline United Airlines which blamed a sharp fall in
demand. Iberia, part of International Airlines Group (IAG) along
with BA, said on Wednesday it was temporarily suspending all
flights to Shanghai, its only mainland Chinese destination.
(Reporting by Alistair Smout; editing by Stephen Addison)
International Airlines (IAG)