US President Donald Trump speaks to the press after a meeting with banking executives in the Cabinet Room of the White House March 11, 2020, in Washington, DC. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / AFP)

A United States travel ban on European visitors will hit US airlines, their employees, and travelers “extremely hard”, trade group Airlines for America said on Wednesday.

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Earlier, US President Donald Trump suspended travel from Europe to the United States, except for the UK, for 30 days starting on Friday as he responded to mounting pressure to take action against the spread of the coronavirus.