Flights reduced amid scramble to leave

HONG KONG - China is evacuating its nationals from quake-hit parts of Japan and two airlines cut flights to the stricken country, while foreigners scramble to leave from Tokyo's airports

As food, water and power ran short in large swathes of Japan and a nuclear crisis worsened, Air China and Taiwan's EVA Airways reduced their flights into the ravaged country. Malaysia screened passengers from Japan for radiation.

China said it was sending buses to evacuate its citizens from four disaster-hit areas, including Fukushima, where two explosions took place at a nuclear power station yesterday and radiation levels were found to be harmful to humans.

Other overseas nationals in Japan took matters into their own hands.

Student Kin Li, 18, returned home to Hong Kong from Tokyo because of radiation fears.

"Things were so chaotic over there. There were long lines at the airport," he said at the Chinese territory's airport.

At Tokyo's Haneda airport, where long queues stretched from departure desks, French national Baptiste Chetcuti said: "I have a pregnant wife and a 10-year-old daughter, and we're here at Haneda airport. We don't have any return tickets yet, but we want to leave Japan - whatever the price."

EVA Airways cancelled 14 flights scheduled to leave for Tokyo from Taiwan before the end of March and another five to Sapporo, a spokesperson for the firm said, blaming cancellations by tourists.

All flights to Sendai, whose airport was flattened by the tsunami, were cancelled until June 30, he said.

Air China called off half of its six daily Beijing-Tokyo flights for yesterday and today, and one of its three Shanghai-Tokyo flights for each of the two days, while flights to Sendai were on hold.

But the flag carrier said it had cut flights because of worries over aftershocks rather than radioactive contamination.

Air China was not screening any incoming passengers for radiation.

But the company that runs Malaysia's airports said it was checking passengers for radioactive contamination as they emerged off direct flights from Japan.

"The screening started on Monday, involving three airlines which fly directly to Tokyo - Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia X," a spokesperson for Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad said.

South Korea said it was considering a similar measure, and Thai Airways said it had told its cabin crew on flights to Tokyo not to stay overnight in Japan to reduce the risks from radiation.

India downplayed the threats, however, with officials at the foreign ministry saying they were constantly in touch with the embassy in Japan and had so far seen no need to evacuate Indians.

An Air India spokesperson said: "Up to now we have no instructions from the government to screen passengers from Japan for radiation."

Software exporter Infosys said however it had called its 350-strong Indian workforce home.

South Korean flights to Japan were operating as normal - except to Sendai - a spokesperson for Incheon airport said, while Australian airlines Qantas and Jetstar said their flights were going ahead.

Indonesian and Hong Kong authorities and Singapore Airlines said their flight schedules would proceed.