With the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics just weeks away, China’s government is set to ban all inbound commercial flights from the United States in a bid to keep Covid cases out

Beginning on January 19 and lasting for at least two weeks, all flights from the US to China have already been canceled, or are likely to be suspended over the coming days.

The Beijing Winter Olympics commence on February 4 and most participants are taking special charted flights, restricted to those who fall within the event’s strict travel bubble.

But, since June, China’s Civil Aviation Administration has introduced a so-called “circuit-breaker” to regulate international flights.

This rule requires any flight to be automatically suspended for two weeks if five or more passengers test positive upon arrival in China.

Under this rule, from December 24, more than a third of international flights scheduled to depart for China were canceled.

This has supporters concerned, with many fearing they will be impacted by the regulations and unable to attend the Games at all.