A Delta Air Lines plane is seen at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on October 25, 2019. File Photo: Courtesy of Delta Air Lines

A number of foreign airlines said they are preparing to flying back to China after suspending flights to the country due to the COVID-19 epidemic for nearly five months.

On Tuesday, Air France announced that it will resume service to Shanghai with one flight a week. The airline's first flight is scheduled to depart from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport on Thursday and arrive at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on Friday.

Air France said that it will gradually increase the frequency of passenger flights to China pending government approval, travel restrictions and customer demand.

Before restarting passenger services, the carrier's operational activities were mainly focused on cargo flights between China and France. Currently it operates 27 cargo flights a week.

On Tuesday, Air New Zealand became the first foreign airline to announce that it will restart scheduled passenger flights to China, and will resume its Auckland-Shanghai route on Monday, using a Boeing 787-9.

Air New Zealand said that the restart is due to demand from Chinese overseas and businesspeople stranded overseas.

More overseas carriers including Lufthansa, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Virgin Atlantic having been approved to resume flights into Shanghai. 

United Airlines said in an e-mail to Global Times that "We welcome efforts to allow for resumption of our service between the US and China for the benefit of our customers." The company said it aims to re-launch service to China in the weeks ahead.

Delta Air Lines said it would resume passenger flights to Shanghai from Seattle next week via Seoul, and weekly flights from Seattle and Detroit beginning in July.

According to rules from Civil Aviation Administration of China, from June 8, foreign airlines can choose a port city with reception capability and fly one flight per week, but they must first obtain an access certificate from the local airport. 

The above-mentioned airlines have received an access certificate from Shanghai Pudong International Airport. 

Shanghai is no longer a first entry point for international flights to Beijing, the civil regulator said on June 8, a move that suggests Shanghai will begin to welcome more international flights.

However, the regulator warns the policy has a circuit-breaker mechanism that states if all passengers on one airline route test negative for three consecutive weeks, the airline will be permitted to add one more flight. If five passengers on a flight test positive, the responsible airline will have to halt operations for a week, and if 10 test positive it must suspend operations for four weeks. 

On June 11, the suspension of the China Southern Airlines route to Dhaka was the first to trigger the circuit break when 17 passengers tested positive after landing in South China's Guangdong Province. Fourteen were on a flight from Bangladesh and three were on a flight from India. 

Some airlines have also begun to require passengers to provide nucleic acid test reports before being allowed to board to avoid triggering the circuit-breaker mechanism.

Air New Zealand said it has strengthened the cleaning and disinfection of airports, VIP lounges and cabins, and hand sanitizers are provided at airports, check-in counters and aircraft. Protective equipment including medical gloves and disposable masks and other protective items are being provided. All earphones, pillowcases and blankets will be fully disinfected before and after use.

Air France also said that from May 11th, all passengers on flights will have their temperature checked before departure, and all crew members and agents who are in contact with passengers must wear masks. A series of measures such as daily cleaning, simplified on-board service and regular disinfection are needed to ensure safety during air travel, the airline said.