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| The plane took off from Ha Noi last Thursday headed for Lien Khuong Airport in the Central Highlands Province of Da Lat. However, it landed at Cam Ranh Airport in the central province of Khanh Hoa.— VNA Photo |
HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Transport Minister Dinh La Thang has told the Civil Aviation Authority of Viet Nam (CAAV) to tighten supervision of VietJetAir after one of its planes recently landed at the wrong airport.
The minister said he was anxious to prevent any more such incidents and called for strict punishment for those involved.
Thang held a meeting on Wednesday to hear reports from various agencies about the case.
The plane took off from Ha Noi last Thursday headed for Lien Khuong Airport in the Central Highlands Province of Da Lat. It had about 200 passengers on board.
However, it landed at Cam Ranh Airport in the central province of Khanh Hoa. This was 140km away from its intended destination.
An additional flight had to be arranged to take the passengers from Khanh Hoa to Da Lat.
Following the incident, the flight co-ordinator and crew members of VietJetAir flight VJ8575 were temporarily suspended by the CAAV.
CAAV chief Lai Xuan Thanh said the mistake was made as a result of a sudden adjustment in VietJetAir's flying plan.
The aircrew, including the Czech captain, were supposed to fly to Cam Ranh, but were transferred to another plane flying to Da Lat.
All cabin members were informed of the new destination, but the pilot still thought he was flying the original route until the plane was 8km from Cam Ranh airport.
Air co-ordinators, flight attendants, the captain, and first officer are all said to have failed to strictly follow the required procedures before departure, CAAV chief Thanh said.
Minister Thang told the CAAV to report the punishments issued to him before July 5.
He also told it to publish the outcome in the media and inform the flight's passengers.
The minister apologised to the flight's passengers for the inconvenience.
At yesterday's meeting, the minister also reprimanded CAAV Chief Thanh for failing to inform the transport ministry about the incident when it happened.
He said the CAAV failed to effectively carry out its co-ordinating function. He also accused it of lacking proper punishment mechanisms.
Thang said the airline was directly responsible for the incident, but it was also the responsibility of the State management body in charge of the aviation sector. — VNS