The Chinese authorities announced the suspension of the air connection between Portugal and China, for a period of one month, starting this Monday, June 27, after detecting ten cases of Covid-19 on a flight from Lisbon.  

In a statement quoted by Notícias ao Minuto, the Civil Aviation Administration of China informed that the flight between Lisbon and the Chinese city of Xi'an, operated by Beijing Capital Airlines, will be suspended as of June 27.

The source says that flights to China are subject to the 'circuit breaker' policy: when five or more cases are detected on board, the connection is suspended for two weeks; if there are ten or more cases, the connection is suspended for a month.

Under the Covid-19 'zero cases' strategy, China has kept its borders virtually closed since March 2020. The country authorizes only one flight per city per airline, which has reduced the number of international air connections to the country by 98% compared to the pre-pandemic period.

The air connection between Portugal and China was resumed precisely on June 12, with one flight a week, after being suspended for more than six months.

The authorities of Xi'an, the capital of central China's Shaanxi province, suspended the connection with Lisbon last December 25, at a time when the region was facing an outbreak of Covid-19. The city only resumed international connections this month.

It should be noted that anyone arriving in China must still undergo a quarantine of up to three weeks in facilities designated by the government.