Power blackout disrupts multiple flights

Source: Pano feed

Le Anh


The power outage at the air traffic control tower of Tan Son Nhat International Airport changed multiple flight schedules - PHOTO: ANH QUAN

The power outage at the air traffic control tower of Tan Son Nhat International Airport changed multiple flight schedules - PHOTO: ANH QUAN



A Jetstar Pacific source confirmed 25 flights of this low-cost carrier were rescheduled due to the incident. Ten aircraft of VietJetAir were affected as well.



There were 54 other airplanes changing their takeoff and landing times at the airport. VietJetAir’s Flight VJ157 from Hanoi to HCMC was forced to land at Buon Ma Thuot Airport in the Central Highlands.


A source from the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines said at least eight flights departing from this airport were delayed and a number of aircraft could not land at the airport as scheduled.


Flights preparing to leave Tan Son Nhat airport and those preparing to come had to change their departure and arrival times.


On the same evening, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) said there were more than 50 flights flying over HCMC’s flight information region during the power failure. These flights were monitored by the response center under the Air Traffic Control Centre in Hanoi through the automatic air traffic management system (ATMS).


Other response measures were also taken such as notifying long-distance control centers in Singapore, Manila, Sanya, Kuala Lumpur, Vientiane and Phnom Penh to deploy contingency plans.


Air traffic controllers were required to delay take-offs. Meanwhile, the arriving aircraft were diverted to their airports of origin or backup airports.


The power cut directly affected three international flights transiting in HCMC. Seven jetliners flew to backup airports and others waited on the taxi ways, resulting in a lot of flight delays.


CAAV explained the power outage resulted from a malfunction of the electrical system of the air traffic control tower at 11:11 a.m., which was fixed at 12:25 p.m. The tower’s operations came back to normal at 12:40 p.m. the same day.


During the power failure, the radar did not work, making it impossible for the air traffic control tower to relay from airplanes. Leaders of CAAV and the Vietnam Air Traffic Management Corporation, as well as leading technical experts, immediately came to HCMC to determine the cause to prevent similar incidents in the future.


Tan Son Nhat International Airport now handles an average of nearly 300 flights a day.




Đăng ký: VietNam News

Related Posts