659 flights delayed at HCMC airport as holiday approaches

659 flights were delayed in Ho Chi Minh City on the first three days of February as travel demand surged ahead of Tet, Vietnam’s biggest holiday season.

The number accounted for 60% of over 1,100 flights conducted at Tan Son Nhat International Airport from 12 a.m. Thursday to 4 p.m. Saturday, according to the airport management.

This Tet (Lunar New Year festival) will last from Feb. 8 to 14, 2024. The traditional festival will peak on Feb. 10.

VietJet Air recorded a delay ratio of 74%, and Vietnam Airlines 59%. These two carriers operated the largest number of flights.

The same ratio was 70% for Jetstar Pacific and 57% for Bamboo Airways.

In the last three days 40 flights were cancelled at Tan Son Nhat due to bad weather, or 3.63% of the total.

Thick fog, covering many localities in northern Vietnam in recent days, delayed flights and created a domino effect that impacted operation at Tan Son Nhat, the biggest aviation hub in the country. Some flights were delayed by four to five hours.

Deputy Minister of Transport Le Anh Tuan has ordered the airport to collaborate with airlines more closely to improve transportation during these high-demand days as people travel to their hometown for Lunar New Year Tet holiday, which begins Feb. 8.

Tan Son Nhat is set to serve 900 flights on Sunday with 128,000 passengers.

The airport is the biggest in Vietnam with a capacity of 28 million passengers a year, but it already operated at 150% of capacity, or 41 million passengers, in 2019.

It is forecast to serve 120,000-150,000 passengers during the holiday season this year, higher than the same period in 2019.

A third terminal is being built and is scheduled to be completed next year to increase the total capacity to 50 million passengers a year.

By Gia Minh – VnExpress.net – February 4, 2024