London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 30, 2025

Airline crew reportedly held in COVID-19 ‘concentration camp’

Airline crew reportedly held in COVID-19 ‘concentration camp’

The cabin crew of a British Airways flight has been held in what one flight attendant has described as a “concentration camp” in Hong Kong after a colleague tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a report.
The incident - which sparked a diplomatic row between the UK and the former British colony - began when a female crew member on the flight from London was locked in a hospital room Monday at orders from Chinese officials, The Sun reported.

“She has not eaten since being on the plane and we are worried for her. They brought her only bread and water,” the woman’s friend told the outlet.

“She is locked in with CCTV watching her. She’s fuming and scared for her life. She tested positive for COVID but has a normal temperature and has no symptoms. She feels fine.”

Meanwhile, about a dozen of her colleagues from Flight BA31 were removed from their hotel room and taken to a compound that flight attendant Ellie Freeman described as “a literal concentration camp” where they have to spend 14 days under quarantine.

The pilots were not considered to be at risk and were allowed to return to London, according to the outlet.

The airline told The Sun that it was in talks with the British consulate, where diplomats have asked Chinese authorities to allow the crew to return to London and remain under lockdown in the UK.

A memo received by the pilots’ union said the “vile” compound has “dangerous electrical wiring and blocked fire escapes,” according to The Sun.

“Crew members face a mandatory COVID test on arrival. If positive, you will be confined to your hotel room for a further 14 days, with no exercise or fresh air, limited catering and WiFi that doesn’t work,” the memo reads.

Footage posted on social media by Freeman shows a tiny bathroom housing a shower head and a plastic tub for bathing.

Ellie told the news outlet that she was “so scared” after she expressed concerns online that she felt a “breakdown” was imminent.

The crew was provided with a spartan menu consisting mainly of boiled eggs, vegetables, noodles and crackers, according to the report. The airline has arranged for toiletries and pajamas to be sent to its stranded staff.

“We are in regular contact with our crew who are quarantining in line with local COVID regulations, and providing extra supplies to make their stay as comfortable as possible,” BA told The Sun.

“We work closely with governments in every country we fly to, and will always put the safety and wellbeing of our teams and customers at the heart of everything we do,” it added.

The Foreign Office said: “Our staff are in direct contact with members of a group of British Airways crew in Hong Kong, and are in touch with BA and the local authorities.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
×