Thai Airways International will use larger aircraft to transport its passengers affected by flight cancellations in Hong Kong as Typhoon Mangkhut ripped through the city.
THAI vice-president Flt Lt Pratana Patanasiri said it planned to use planes with more seating capacity on the route to help passengers stranded in Hong Kong after the weather situation returns to normal, according to the message posted on the airline's Facebook account.
THAI is among airlines which either cancelled or rescheduled flights in and out of Hong Kong.
According to the Hong Kong Airport Authority, 889 flights were cancelled on Sunday because of the storm. The city’s Airport Express train and bus service were also suspended.
Cathay Pacific Airways said in a statement that it was experiencing “severe disruptions” and the resumption of operations on Monday will depend on weather conditions. The airline canceled more than 400 flights, while Cathay Dragon and Hong Kong Airlines grounded their fleets on Sunday.
Hong Kong International Airport said ferry services between the airport and all of the Pearl River Delta ports had been suspended until further notice.
Air China cancelled more than 200 flights, mostly in and out of Guangdong, Guangxi, Hong Kong and Hainan, as of 2 pm (1pm Thailand time) on Sunday.
China Southern Airlines scrapped all flights to and from Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Hong Kong on Sunday, and suspended those after midday in Zhanjiang and Haikou, and later than 1pm in Beihai. All but six flights in and out of Guangzhou between midday Sunday and 8am on Monday were cancelled, the airline said.
China Eastern Airlines grounded most of its planes covering these areas.
AirAsia said service disruption was expected to continue through Monday. It cancelled all flights to and from Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Shantou, and axed 29 flights on Saturday.
Philippine Airlines suspended 10 international flights on Sunday. In Vietnam, the national carrier suspended four flights between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Hong Kong on Sunday, and delayed two between Ho Chi Minh City and Hong Kong on Monday, Vietnam Plus reported, citing information from Vietnam Airlines.
Typhoon Mangkhut struck Hong Kong and southern China on Sunday and is expected to cause heavy rain in Thailand from Monday to Wednesday.