Air China said late on Saturday it will “adjust” its flights between China and the US due to the coronavirus epidemic. A statement on the airline’s Weibo microblog showed that flights between Beijing and Washington, and Shenzhen and Los Angeles had been canceled. China’s civil aviation authority last week urged domestic carriers to continue flying international routes after more than 25,000 flights to and from or within China were axed because of plunging demand.<br/>
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South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Friday that his government did not agree with plans to cut some of struggling SAA domestic routes, plunging rescue efforts for the cash-strapped carrier into uncertainty. Specialists appointed to try to rescue SAA said on Thursday that SAA would cease flights to Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth from Feb. 29, as well as cutting some international routes, as part of efforts to conserve cash and make the airline more attractive to potential equity partners. SAA flights to Cape Town will continue on a reduced basis, the specialists said. The public enterprises ministry, which oversees SAA, said it wanted the route changes reviewed. “Government will be making representations to the Business Rescue Practitioners in order to balance the necessity for trimming unprofitable routes with the need to ensure the future sustainability of both the airline and South Africa’s aviation industry,” the ministry said.<br/>
Plans to cut some of SAA's domestic and international routes are aimed at making the airline sustainable and free from government funding after restructuring, experts appointed to try to rescue the company said Sunday. State-owned SAA entered a form of bankruptcy protection in December and is fighting for its survival. The rescue specialists said Thursday that SAA would cease flights to Durban, East London and Port Elizabeth from Feb. 29, as well as cutting some international routes, as part of efforts to conserve cash and make the airline more attractive to potential equity partners. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Friday his government did not agree with plans to cut some of SAA’s domestic routes, plunging rescue efforts for the cash-strapped carrier into uncertainty. “We recognize the concerns raised, especially around the domestic routes. We will continue to engage with stakeholders, with a commitment to include inputs into the final business rescue plan, which is due to be published by the end of this month,“ SAA business rescue practitioners Les Matuson and Siviwe Dongwana said. Under South African company law, the business rescue team is entitled to take decisions that are deemed necessary to turn a distressed company around, independently of government. <br/>