Virgin Australia is cutting all its flights between Australia and Hong Kong, citing challenging market conditions and uncertainties from the coronavirus outbreak.
Starting March 2, 2020, the airline will cease all Sydney-Hong Kong services. It had previously announced the suspension of Melbourne-Hong Kong route, with the last flight taking place on February 11.
“The Hong Kong market has remained challenging for the airline and demand has continued to decline following ongoing civil unrest,” a statement from Virgin said.
“These factors, combined with growing uncertainty around the recent coronavirus outbreak, have led to the decision to cease operating services.”
The airline’s chief commercial officer John MacLeod said the decision to withdraw from the Hong Kong market was a “difficult” one.
“Current circumstances demonstrate that Hong Kong is no longer a commercially viable route for Virgin Australia to continue operating, however international tourism remains an important part of our strategy through our other international routes and partner airlines,” MacLeod said.
Virgin said it is contacting customers who had already booked flights to assist them with alternative arrangements, including rebooking on other carriers or refunding tickets, Finder.com.au reported.
This article originally appeared on Over60.