BEIJING — China's civil aviation regulator has announced the suspension of a Xiamen Airlines flight and a Swiss International Air Lines flight after several passengers tested positive for COVID-19 on recent flights.

A total of five passengers tested positive on Xiamen Airlines' Los Angeles-Xiamen flight MF830 on Jan 8, and the flight will be suspended for two weeks starting Jan 25, said the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) on Jan 22.

Swiss International Air Lines' Zurich-Shanghai flight LX188 will be suspended for two weeks starting Feb 1 after six passengers tested positive on the Jan 11 flight.

On Dec 16, 2020, the CAAC updated the reward and suspension mechanism introduced in June last year to further contain the spread of COVID-19.

According to the latest CAAC policy, the suspension of flights will be extended from one week to two weeks if the number of passengers testing positive reaches five.

The suspension will last for four weeks if the number of passengers who test positive for COVID-19 reaches 10.