Vietnam Airlines Crew Suspended After Aircraft Lands on Closed Runway
A Vietnam Airlines crew has been suspended after landing an aircraft on the wrong runway at Cam Ranh International Airport (CXR) on Sunday.
Vietnam Airlines Flight 7344 was flying from Ho Chi Minh City (SGN) to CXR — a journey that took just 40 minutes. The Airbus A321 (registration VN-A613) took off from SGN on time at 2:00pm local time before landing on the unauthorized runway around 2:55pm — five minutes earlier than scheduled.
A representative from Vietnam Airlines said that the aircraft landed on the wrong runway at CXR because there weren't clear signs to differentiate between runways. The runway on which the aircraft landed was still under construction and not connected to the terminal.
Local newspaper Doisongphapluat reports that the aircraft was carrying 203 passengers, and no one was injured. Passengers and their luggage were effectively stuck on the runway and had to be transported to the terminal, though it's not yet clear what happened to the aircraft.
The flight was operated by seven crew members, including a captain who is a US citizen and had been working with Vietnam Airlines since January 2018.
The Vietnamese Department of Aviation is establishing a team to investigate the incident. In the interim, Doisongphapluat reports that the Civil Aviation Department has suspended all seven crew members. The rest of the investigation is ongoing.
