Chinese airline sued for rejecting HIV-positive passengers

Three HIV-positive passengers have sued a Chinese budget airline after they were denied boarding on a plane, Global Times reported Friday.

A court in China's Shenyang province has accepted the case, which is viewed as a landmark anti-discrimination suit.

The HIV carriers were denied travel from Shenyang in northeast China to the northern city of Shijiazhuang by Spring Airlines July 28 after they informed airline staff they were HIV-positive. They have demanded an apology and compensation of about $8,000 from the airline.

Spring Airlines has also been accused of carrying a regulation stating that HIV-positive passengers should not be transported.

The regulation was deleted from the airline's website Aug 5, a complainant said.  This is the first case brought against an airline for discriminating against an HIV-positive person in China, according to Global Times.

Nine other major airlines in China have said that they do not bar HIV-positive passengers from their flights.

According to UNAIDS, a UN programme on HIV/AIDS, 780,000 people were estimated to be living with HIV in China by the end of 2011.