Picture courtesy of Vietnam News

 

Vietnam's aviation authorities are investigating an incident at Tân Sơn Nhất Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, where passengers were stranded for 40 minutes due to a glass door delay. The issue arose early Sunday morning when a flight from Đà Nẵng landed shortly after midnight.

 

Passengers disembarked only to find themselves unable to enter the terminal, as the door connecting the jet bridge remained closed. It was eventually opened by a security officer and an airline staff member, but not before passengers endured an uncomfortable wait.

 

Photos circulating in the media depicted visibly tired and frustrated passengers confined in the narrow space, sparking discussions about service quality at Vietnam’s busiest airport.

 

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has called on the Southern Airports Authority to collaborate with Tân Sơn Nhất Airport and other relevant units to thoroughly investigate the incident. Key questions include why the door was not opened promptly and what communication or procedural breakdowns occurred.

 

To address these concerns, the CAAV has also asked for enhanced oversight of airlines and ground service providers. The aim is to ensure that passenger services meet the expected standards of reliability and efficiency.

 

Tân Sơn Nhất Airport has been directed to review and potentially overhaul its passenger-handling procedures. This includes assessing the coordination between various agencies and identifying any operational gaps that may have contributed to the delay. Officials are tasked with pinpointing the root cause and recommending steps to prevent future occurrences, aiming to boost passenger experience and trust in the airport’s operations.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from Vietnam News 2025-06-17

 

 

Been in and out of that airport about 8 visits per year for last 10 years. Everything always worked perfectly.

 

First time ever was in1969, some 56 years ago, when I arrived on a QANTAS charter flight to start my compulsory military service in Sth. Vn. The airport was of course very different then.

 

I recall the QANTAS flight landing and the all male flight stewards, all looking like they were about to die, standing by at every exit door to get the doors open as fast as possible and get all the arriving soldier passengers off the aircraft as quickly as possible and the get the returning soldiers, all in a line at the bottom of the stairs onto the aircraft as quickly as possible.

 

We watched as we eating our food provided in paper bags, as soon as the last returning soldier went on board the aircraft doors were very quickly closed, stairs pulled away quickly and aircraft moved off. 

 

I returned to Australia via Darwin on an Australian Air Force C130 transport.

2 minutes ago, scorecard said:

Been in and out of that airport about 8 visits per year for last 10 years. Everything always worked perfectly.

 

First time ever was in1969, some 56 years ago, when I arrived on a QANTAS charter flight to start my compulsory military service in Sth. Vn. The airport was of course very different then.

 

I recall the QANTAS flight landing and the all male Australian flight stewards, all looking like death, standing by at every exit door to get the doors open as fast as possible and get all the arriving soldier passengers off the aircraft as quickly as possible and the get the returning soldiers, all waiting in a line at the bottom of the stairs onto the aircraft as quickly as possible.

 

We watched as we eating our food provided in paper bags, as soon as the last returning soldier went on board the aircraft doors were very quickly closed, stairs pulled away quickly by VN airport staff and aircraft moved off. 

 

I returned to Australia via Darwin on an Australian Air Force C130 transport with no sound proofing whatever and sling seats, a long 2 step very uncomfortable flight.