SINGAPORE - Local budget carrier Scoot will suspend all flights between Singapore and mainland China from Feb 8, amid the growing severity of the Wuhan virus outbreak.

Scoot had said early on Friday (Jan 31) that it would suspend flights to 11 cities and reduce flights to eight other cities, but had stepped up its precautionary measures in line with those announced by the Government later in the day.

Measures that the authorities announced to limit the spread of the Wuhan virus include the barring of all travellers arriving from mainland China who had been there in the past 14 days from entry or transit in Singapore.

Scoot currently operates 100 weekly flights to 18 points in China, excluding Wuhan.

It said that before Feb 8, some flights to China, such as those to Guangzhou and Qingdao, will be operating on reduced frequencies before the suspension kicks in till late March.

Between Feb 2 and Feb 7, the flights operating to and from China will have limited in-flight services with no sales of food and beverage items.

All customers will be provided with a food pack, including water.

Customers booked on flights affected by the schedule change will receive a refund, said Scoot.

The operator added: "Scoot will continue to closely monitor the coronavirus situation as the health and safety of our passengers and employees are our highest priority.

"For now, Scoot flights between Singapore and all mainland China destinations after the above-stated suspension period will continue to operate as scheduled."

Scoot is a member of the Singapore Airlines Group, which also includes Singapore Airlines and SilkAir.

The two latter carriers also announced earlier on Friday that it will reduce the number of flights to mainland China in February, subject to regulatory approvals.

In a Facebook post on Friday, SIA said that the airline as well as SilkAir would be cancelling some flights between Singapore and cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xiamen, Chengdu and Chongqing.

Affected customers will be notified and rebooked on other flights, SIA said.

SIA currently operates 56 weekly flights to Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai, while SilkAir operates 36 weekly flights to Chengdu, Chongqing, Shenzhen and Xiamen.