Customs officers inspect an inbound flight at the Capital International Airport in Beijing, capital of China, March 18, 2020. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao)

A flight from France to Beijing on Sunday was found to be carrying 10 passengers who showed fever and respiratory symptoms when it landed at an airport in Tianjin, the city designated as a first entry point for international flights destined for Beijing. 

The symptomatic passengers were sent directly to a designated hospital in Tianjin for further medical investigations. A total of 171 close contacts, including 10n crew members, were sent to local designated isolation points for observation.  

Other passengers without any abnormal signs were transferred to Beijing after the plane was thoroughly disinfected and other entry procedures were completed. 

The entire process, from the passengers getting off the plane, filling in epidemiological questionnaires, going through inspections to finally waiting in the hall to board, was carried out in a closed area, without contacting any other flight personnel, reported the Beijing Evening News on Monday.  

The Air China flight CA943 from Paris to Beijing had 229 passengers on board, 212 of whom were Chinese nationals, while the 17 foreigners were from France, India and other countries. 

The nationalities of the symptomatic passengers are still unknown, reports said.

This was the second flight carrying passengers with abnormal symptoms that the Tianjin Airport has received since it became one of the 12 designated entry points for international flights boundfor Beijing on Thursday. 

A Moscow to Beijing flight reported one passenger with fever and eight with cough symptoms on Saturday, all of whom are currently under quarantine, reports said. 

Global Times