Chartered flights for students arranged

Chartered flights to take Chinese students in the United States back to the motherland are underway.

The first two chartered flights organized by the Chinese embassy in the US took off from two major cities in the US separately during the past weekend, bringing about 400 Chinese teenagers back home amid the global COVID-19 pandemic.

One flight operated by China Southern Airlines departed New York's JFK Airport on Saturday, with about 200 students on board. It landed at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in Guangdong province.

The other flight, also on Saturday, was operated by China Eastern Airlines and flew 186 teenagers from San Francisco international Airport to Shanghai Pudong International Airport.

The flights departed only five days after the Chinese embassy in the United States started gauging the need of teenage Chinese students in the US to return home.

A statement released by the embassy on April 6 said that at present, most Chinese students are staying near their schools in the US. China's relevant domestic departments are arranging chartered flights for teenage students, especially those under age 18, in foreign countries who urgently need to return to China.

Priority for the flights will be given to the youngest students.

The statement reiterated that passengers should be underage students who are not accompanied by parents. Guardians or relatives are not allowed to embark.

The statement said the cost of airfare and forced quarantine should be borne by each student. According to a post on Chinese social media site Weibo, the ticket price for the chartered flight from New York to Guangzhou is 36,117 yuan ($5,110), and from a Caixin news report, the flight from San Francisco to Shanghai costs 23,448 yuan ($3,318).

Representatives of China Eastern Airlines told caijing.com that the flight from San Francisco to Shanghai had 314 available seats, but only 186 were sold, including 138 in economy class and 48 in business class.

In a video clip on Weibo, the underage Chinese students are seen wearing protective suits while waiting on line at JFK Airport on Saturday.

According to another statement by the embassy on April 3, about 90 percent of Chinese students in the US are choosing to stay to continue studies. Only three students were confirmed infected by the coronavirus. One of them is recovered, and two are under medical treatment.