China’s plane-cleaning rule spurs US talks after aborted trip

Talks are underway between the US and China on possible changes to the Chinese government’s new aircraft-cleaning requirements that prompted a Delta flight to turn back to Seattle and that could trigger the cancellation of some flights to the Asian nation. The discussions were confirmed Tuesday by a State Department official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The new sanitation mandates -- spurred by the spread of Covid-19 -- significantly extend the time planes are on the ground and largely copy steps that US airlines already take to clean between flights, representatives for the industry said. There also is a shortage of available workers to carry out the added steps, they said. The new requirements are part of the changes that countries and industries are making to try to slow the spread of the highly contagious omicron coronavirus variant. China has been stepping up border restrictions because of delta variant outbreaks and detection of the new strain among foreign travelers ahead of the Beijing Winter Olympics in early February. Hong Kong will mandate a three-day hotel quarantine for air-cargo crews to thwart transmission of omicron. The US is seeking changes to the new Chinese cleaning mandates, since rigorous disinfecting procedures already are performed between flights by carriers globally, the State Department official said. Airlines implemented extensive onboard cleaning protocols early in the pandemic. Delta’s service to China “remains very fluid” as it evaluates the change in procedures that caused it to turn around a Dec. 21 flight to Shanghai, returning the plane to where it took off in Seattle. The carrier is assessing its twice-weekly trips from Detroit and Seattle to Shanghai on a flight-by-flight basis, a spokesman said Tuesday.<br/>