Shanghai closes airspace over Typhoon Chanthu

In response to Typhoon Chantho, Shanghai has canceled 80% of all its flights as of today, September 13. From 11:00 local time, all flights to and from Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG), and from 15:00, flights to and from Shanghai Hongqiao Airport (SHA) were also cancelled.

The shipping ports in Shanghai and the surrounding areas have also suspended container import and export services from today until further notice. With winds of more than 170 km/h near Al Ain, Typhoon Chantho hopes to bring strong winds and rain along the Chinese coast.

About 28 million people live in the Shanghai area, and authorities not only in the city but also in neighboring regions have suspended schools until further notice. The flight suspension comes three weeks after Shanghai Pudong Airport suspended cargo operations due to new testing requirements against COVID-19, and is due to an increase in cases in the region in recent weeks.

The city will have to face a meteorological emergency along with a health emergency due to the COVID-19 virus that despite vaccination rates seems not to give up and continues to wreak havoc on the environment, which is one of the worst affected areas worldwide.

The airport management company, Shanghai Group Co., Ltd., announced the cancellation of flights on its website. They advise all passengers traveling on any of the affected flights to check back with their airlines through their websites, WeChat and social media for further updates on cancellations in the next few days.