This accounted for 89.4 per cent of the total flights, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of Viet Nam (CAAV).

The punctuality rate for the national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines, was 90.1 per cent, with 9,141 flights being on time, out of the total 10,145 flights it operated during the month.

Meanwhile, the rate of low-cost airline Vietjet was 88.6 per cent last month, with 6,559 out of a total of 7,399.

Jetstar Pacfic reported a punctuality rate of 84.9 per cent, with 1,979 flights out of its total 2,330, while Vasco’s rate was highest among the four airlines, at 98.9 per cent, with 1,013 out of its total 1,024 flights in the month.

According to CAAV, late return of planes was the main cause of delays and cancellations.

Faults on the part of the airlines themselves were also blamed for delays in arrival. Other reasons for delays and cancellations included airports’ limited infrastructure and services, flight management and operation, weather and technical issues, CAAV said.

Since November, according to Circular 27/2017/TT-BGTVT issued by the Ministry of Transport, the airlines must provide information on the status of the flight, the delay or cancellation of trips to the airport authority.

In case of a delay or an interruption of 15 minutes or more of the flight schedule, the carriers have to inform the passengers, explain the reason, inform them about the expected takeoff time and apologise to the passengers.

Drinks, a meal and accommodation should be provided to the passengers if the flight delay is for more than two hours, three hours or six hours, respectively.

For flights that are delayed for more than six hours beginning from 10pm to 7am the following day, accommodation or alternative arrangements must be arranged with the consent of the passengers.

Within 24 hours from the scheduled flight departure time, airlines are required to submit a report with the flight number, departure time, the number of passengers affected and the compensation provided, the regulation states. — VNS