Flights Resume at Hong Kong Airport After Two Days of Stops and Starts
by Daniel McCarthy /
After two days of flight cancellations and shutdowns because of demonstrations by protestors, Hong Kong International Airport reopened on Wednesday after officials secured a temporary injunction restricting protestors to two areas of the airport.
According to the Airport Authority, an interim court order will now prohibit any unlawful obstruction of the airport, including entering the departure hall without a ticket or passport or obstructing the roads nearby.
On Monday and Tuesday, protestors occupying the departures and arrivals halls caused havoc and made it impossible for travelers trying to get through to security or immigration halls to do so, forcing the airport to halt all flights. Now, peaceful protestors will still be allowed at the airport, but they will be limited to two designated areas near the exits.
After some cancellations earlier in the day, flights were getting back on track as of Wednesday afternoon.
Because of the disruptions and closures, Cathay Pacific, the flag carrier of Hong Kong, is waiving all rebooking and rerouting charges for tickets issued before Aug. 14 for travel through Aug. 16. Other carriers with routes in Hong Kong are still offering change fee waivers for their flights — American Airlines and United are both offering waivers for flights scheduled through Aug. 15.