A Vietjet Air plane skidded off the runway at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City Sunday afternoon, landing amidst a heavy downpour.
The airbus A321 (reg. VN-A657) was operating flight VJ322. It had flown in from Phu Quoc Island off the southern coast. As it landed at Tan Son Nhat, it skidded off the runway into a grass field at 12:24 p.m.
The incident has affected many other flights. A representative from the Southern Airports Authority said: “The runway might have to be closed until 5 p.m. All landing and taking off will be affected.”
The runway in the incident is the only one operative at Tan Son Nhat, which has two runways. The other has been closed for upgrade.
Vietjet has confirmed the accident, saying all passengers are safe and have disembarked.
The carrier blamed heavy rains and strong winds for the accident, which forced several other flights to circle around the airport instead of landing as scheduled.
With Storm Nuri forming over the East Sea early on Saturday, heavy rains and strong winds have lashed many places in southern Vietnam, including HCMC, according to the Southern Region Hydrology Meteorology Forecasting Station.
