Aerial photo of the Phoenix-shaped terminal of Daxing Airport in southern Beijing. Photo: Courtesy of Tao Ran

China's air regulator moved to divert incoming international flights from Beijing to other Chinese cities, in a quick response to contain rising imported infections of the novel coronavirus.

CA910, which is to depart from Moscow for Beijing on Friday, will land at Tianjin; CA934 from Paris to Beijing on Sunday will land at Tianjin; CA926 from Tokyo, will land at Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, from Friday to Sunday, and HU7976 from Toronto will be diverted to Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, from Saturday to Sunday, according to a note on the official website of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) on Thursday.

Passengers on the above international flights will be quarantined at the first landing city. Passengers who meet the boarding conditions for quarantine can take the original flights into Beijing, the note said.

The note also said the arrangement will be adjusted in a timely manner in accordance with changes in actual epidemic control progress. 

The plan came as Beijing recorded the largest number of imported confirmed cases, accounting for 34 percent of the nationwide total. A total of 64 imported confirmed cases were reported in Beijing as of Wednesday night.

In a file obtained by Global Times on Thursday, the CAAC said it has set up a special team to help Beijing divert international arrivals to other cities as the number of imported COVID-19 cases in the Chinese capital continues to rise, and the team involves 12 airport operators in such cities as Shanghai, Shenyang and Qingdao.

The CAAC on Thursday also moved to cut overseas flights by Chinese carriers, as it requires the flights on each overseas route will wind down and there will be no chance to get the numbers increased in the coming weeks.

The Global Times earlier this week reported that major Chinese airlines including Air China, China Southern and China Eastern are considering slashing international flights as infections worldwide continue to rise.

China Eastern Airlines said on Tuesday it will cancel some routes from cities departing Shanghai and Fuzhou to cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and Frankfurt in the coming days, according to a document obtained by the Global Times. Most of the cancelled flights were originally scheduled for late March.