US-China Row Over Forced Route Suspensions Escalates | Routes

The US Transportation Department (DOT) is not ruling out counter measures following the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) forcing the temporary suspension of a number of routes to China operated by major US airlines—an action DOT said runs afoul of the bilateral air transport agreement between the two countries. The forced flight cancellations stem from a 2020 CAAC rule that requires the suspension of a route for two weeks if 5-9 arriving passengers test positive for COVID-19 "after arrival," or for four weeks if more than 10 passengers test positive. US-China flights also must be limited to a 75%…