Air China on Thursday removed copies of the Wings of China magazine from its flights after it faced flak for advising travellers to avoid areas of London populated by "Indians, Pakistanis and black people". The comment in an advice section of the publication had created a controversy in the United Kingdom, with local politicians demanding an apology from the state-owned carrier, according to Quartz.

In the English-language section of the article titled ‘Tips from Air China’, the inflight magazine said that while London is considered a safe city to travel in, “precautions are needed when entering areas populated by Indians, Pakistanis and black people”. “We advise tourists not to go out alone at night, and females always to be accompanied by another person when travelling,” the section went on to say, according to CNBC's report. Quartz reported that the Mandarin version of the tip describes areas populated mainly by Indians, Pakistanis and black people as being “relatively more chaotic”.

Advertisement

Labour Party MP for Tooting Dr Rosena Allin-Khan said the statement should be removed, the Evening Standard reported. “I would also like to ask the airline why they thought these precautions needed to be taken,” Khan said. Lambeth and Southwark London assembly member Florence Eshalomi added that the article represented “outdated and near-on racist views”. Civil rights group Hope Not Hate also demanded an apology and said the section was “crassly ill-informed and offensive”. Air China has not responded to requests for a comment, according to the report.

This is not the first time a Chinese company has received criticism for depicting the members of particular communities in negative light. In May, an advertisement for a washing detergent went viral after it showed an African man pushed into a washing machine emerging as an Asian man. The video was called “the most racist ad ever” by sections of the media.