Widespread storms swept across Ho Chi Minh City on the evening of June 11, causing significant disruption to take-offs and landings at the city's busiest airport.
At around 6 pm, Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air issued notices warning that adverse weather conditions were affecting flight operations. Numerous departures were delayed while crews waited for conditions to improve, and several arriving aircraft were instructed to enter holding patterns or divert to alternative airports.
A flight from Kuala Lumpur to Ho Chi Minh City is forced to hold before diverting to Phnom Penh on June 11 (Photo: Flightradar).
According to flight-tracking data from Flightradar24, flight VN678 from Kuala Lumpur was scheduled to land in Ho Chi Minh City at 8.35 pm. However, the aircraft was forced to circle over Ca Mau Province before diverting to Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
A similar situation affected flight VJ812 from Singapore, which had been due to arrive at 8.35 pm. After holding in the air, the aircraft diverted to Cam Ranh Airport in Khanh Hoa Province.
Meanwhile, flight VN1267 from Vinh to Ho Chi Minh City was also redirected to Phnom Penh before later continuing to Tan Son Nhat Airport, where it landed at about 10 pm.
Airlines said delays and diversions caused by severe weather are unavoidable operational measures required to ensure flight safety. Passengers were advised to monitor updates from their airlines for revised departure and arrival schedules.
Thunderstorms at Tan Son Nhat Airport (Photo: Ngoc Tan).
Throughout the afternoon and evening, the Southern Regional Hydrometeorological Centre issued repeated warnings of thunderstorms, strong winds, lightning and heavy rain across Ho Chi Minh City.
Rainfall totals were forecast to range from 20mm to 100mm, with some areas expected to receive more than 100mm.
