Japan suspends new reservations on all incoming flights

By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s transportation ministry says it has asked international airlines to stop taking new reservations for all flights arriving in Japan until the end of December. The ministry says it made the request as an emergency precaution amid growing concern over the spread of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus. Those who have already made reservations are not affected, although flights may be canceled if there are insufficient passengers. Transit passengers are also unaffected. The move comes as Japan confirmed a second case of the omicron variant in a person who arrived from Peru, one day after it reported its first case in a Namibian diplomat.