Covid-19: Japan drops blanket ban on flight reservations after confusion

Japan's transport ministry has cancelled its blanket ban on new reservations for inbound flights and asked airlines to accommodate the needs of returning Japanese, a senior government spokesperson said on Thursday.

The government last month told airlines not to take new reservations for flights to Japan for December in light of the emergence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

But the abrupt measure stirred up worries among those who had intended to return to Japan for year-end holidays, and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the move had caused confusion.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a regular news conference