DUBLIN — Ryanair is to cancel all its Italian flights until April 8 after the government ordered the whole country locked down over the coronavirus, the Irish no-frills airline announced on Tuesday.

From Wednesday, it will cancel all Italian domestic flights and then suspend its international services from Friday until early next month, Ryanair said in a statement.

"Ryanair today announced the suspension of its full flight schedule to/from and within Italy, following the decision of the Italian government to 'lock down' the entire country to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus," the statement said.

The announcement came shortly after Norwegian Air Shuttle said it would cancel "approximately 3,000" of all its flights from mid-March to mid-June — representing 15 percent of its capacity for the period as the coronavirus outbreak hits travel worldwide.

British Airways meanwhile has also canceled flights to Italy.

The widespread cancellations come after Italy imposed unprecedented nationwide restrictions on its 60 million people to control the deadly coronavirus, as China signaled major progress in its battle against the global epidemic. — AFP