Coronavirus infection fears prompt Qantas flight cancellation

A Qantas flight to London has been cancelled after a passenger aboard the plane tested positive to coronavirus.

The Sydney to London flight this evening was cancelled so the plane could be cleaned.

Passengers set to fly on QF1 have been moved to the next available flight.

A Qantas spokesperson said the cleaning operation was in addition to the regular cleaning which takes place after each flight.

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"While Qantas Medical has assessed the risk as extremely low, we are doing some additional cleaning of those aircraft as a precaution," a Qantas spokesperson said.

The infected passenger arrived in Australia on February 28 on QF02, but Qantas was only informed this morning, prompting the cancellation.

There is little indication that coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, can be transmitted in such a manner.

Person-to-person transmission is the most common way people get coronavirus.