Lufthansa is grounding planes and cancelling flights as the coronavirus outbreak spreads in Europe. The German airline said Thursday it has canceled 7,100 European flights for March, mostly within Germany or on routes to Italy, accounting for about 25% of its total capacity. Investors have punished airlines stocks in recent weeks. United stock is down 32% so far this year, for example, and shares in Lufthansa are down 29% over the same period. Earlier this week, Lufthansa said it would ground 150 of its 770 aircraft. "Guests who have submitted their contact details to Lufthansa will be proactively informed of the cancellations," the company said.<br/>
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Gebru Ketema was outside tending cattle on the morning when Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 plunged from the sky into a field near his village, killing all 157 people on board. In the hectic days that followed, he and his neighbours welcomed rescue workers into their homes, offering meals and "sharing in the grief", he recalls. A year later, the crash site -- now surrounded by an unfinished wooden fence -- sees little activity besides visits from mourners bearing flowers. "This place has become famous because of the crash. We've been told they will put some kind of monument here, but the plan appears to be stuck," said Gebru. Ahead of the one-year anniversary of the crash on Tuesday, Ethiopian Airlines has said little about how it might develop the site. As recently as January, it hoped to use the anniversary to announce the winner of an architectural design competition for a memorial, according to a draft document on the plans. But that plan now appears to be on hold after the document drew pushback from some victims' families, who objected to what they perceived as a rushed timeline, according to Zekarias Asfaw, who lost his brother in the crash. The dust-up highlighted concerns about whether Ethiopian Airlines was committed to honouring the dead in a sensitive way, said Zekarias, who serves on a committee involved in discussions about a possible memorial.<br/>
Just hours after Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed southeast of Addis Ababa last March, mourners began flocking to a building down the road from where it took off: the headquarters of the country's independent pilots' association. On a normal day, the compound has the feel of a country club, with members playing tennis and basketball or lunching with their families on the restaurant's terrace. But as details of the tragedy trickled in, leaders organised an impromptu vigil in the main hall, placing photos of the flight's captain and crew on stands surrounded by candles and roses. It soon became a draw both for Ethiopian Airlines employees -- some of whom would drop in to cry for an hour on their lunch breaks -- and people who had no direct connection to the crash. "That week there was no parking in this compound. There were people coming from all over Addis," said Yeshiwas Fentahun, the president of the pilots' association at the time. "The fact that we had this set-up here was very important, not just for us but for everyone who was affected by the accident." Long after the crash of the Boeing 737 MAX ceased dominating headlines, the pilots' association continues to play a central role in the grieving process of its roughly 800 members. Over the past year, pilots have come to the compound for counselling, taken up collections for victims' families and even renamed the compound's football pitch for Yared Getachew, the captain of the doomed flight who was an avid player. It's the kind of support that members will lean on ahead of the anniversary of the crash on Tuesday, when faded memories are likely to seem fresh again, Yeshiwas said.<br/>