People have been sharing their pictures of empty planes as people stop flying due to Coronavirus

Passengers have been sharing photos of "ghost" flights that have been operating during the coronavirus outbreak.

There seems to be no shortage of near-empty planes as travellers opt not to fly over infection fears.

And despite a huge drop in uptake for routes as demand for air travel plummets around the world, some carriers are flying planes with no passengers.

An almost empty British Airways passenger plane flies from Milan to London (Getty Images)

These "ghost flights" operate well-below capacity in order to safeguard their presence at major hubs.

Terminals have been pictured empty, while passengers have been able to have their own rows on aircraft - and even been able to upgrade for minimal cost. 

Empty seats on a flight from Frankfurt to Linz. (PA)

Under European law, if 80% of allocated flight slots are not operated, slots have to be forfeited.

However Brussels yesterday suspended the EU’s use-it-or-lose it rules.

The European commission president Von der Leyen said the suspension of the rule was a "temporary measure aimed at helping the industry and environment".

She said: “It will relieve the pressure on the aviation industry and in particular on smaller airline companies, but it will also decrease emissions by avoiding the so called ghost flights.

"When airlines fly, almost empty planes, simply to keep that slot.”

It's an issue that has hit airlines across the globe, and has affected both long and short haul flights and domestic routes.

Travellers who have taken flights amid the coronavirus crisis have been sharing photos of their unusually quiet flights.

Rows of empty seats can be seen on several flights, with many passengers able to have entire rows to themselves.

One traveller was even able to provide an entire seat for her rooster, which was pictured belted into the seat next to her.

Another shared a photo of him relaxing with his feet up on the seats, reclining, due to the row of empty seats next to him.

The news comes as US president Donald Trump announced a raft of travel restrictions between Europe and the United States .

In a televised speech on Wednesday, he said he would now ban travel from all EU countries - with the exception of the UK and Ireland - after blaming Europe for not stopping what he called the “foreign virus”.

The Czech Republic has also banned British citizens from entering the country as it goes into a 30 days state of emergency.