Cargo in and out of Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport (PVG), one of China’s busiest processing points for airfreight, remains affected after two cases of Covid-19 were detected at the main PACTL cargo terminal.
In line with China’s zero-Covid prevention measures, the terminal was immediately shut down, with freight forwarders and airlines now fearing a growing backlog.
Prior to Friday’s closure of PACTL, PVG was already only processing about 33% of the throughput it ordinarily receives.
Stringent zero measures demand, among others, that terminal staff work for a week, quarantine for another at an independent facility such as a hotel, and quarantine for yet another at home before returning to work for another cycle of work.
As a result of Beijing’s no-holds-barred approach to eradicate the coronavirus, staff have left PVG’s employ in droves, resulting in a domino effect of slowed processing.
In a bid to circumvent the growing backlog at PVG, airlines such as Polar Air Cargo and Qatar are said to be rerouting Shanghai-bound flights to Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Zhengzhou.
