On February 10 (the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month), the domestic terminal saw a sharp rise in passenger numbers. The airport handled 1,015 flights, surpassing the previous record of 1,003 flights during the Tet 2025 peak.
At the Vietnam Airlines check-in hall in Terminal 3, large crowds queued throughout the morning, a scene rarely seen since the terminal began operations on April 19, 2025.
Nguyen Tho, a passenger travelling from Tan Son Nhat to Chu Lai, said he timed his wait and spent 1 hour 5 minutes in line for baggage check-in and boarding pass issuance, not including security screening.
During the peak season, Tan Son Nhat has advised passengers to arrive at least two hours before domestic departures to avoid missing flights due to localised congestion.
With check-in counters crowded, many travellers turned to self-service kiosks to print boarding passes and baggage tags.
One passenger said the system allowed her to complete check-in and baggage drop quickly, avoiding a queue of more than an hour.
In the security screening area, although automated gates with facial recognition were available, most passengers still chose manual screening, causing minor congestion at identity document checkpoints.
Aviation security staff said heavy congestion at check-in counters also reduced the use of biometric screening, as collecting facial data during check-in takes extra time. When passenger volumes are high, staff may skip the process, meaning travellers cannot use automated gates.
Security checks at Terminals 1 and 2 were noticeably faster than during last year’s peak, largely due to upgraded infrastructure.
At Terminal 1, passenger numbers also rose sharply in early February. Some drivers were unaware that Vietjet had moved from Hall B to Hall A, continuing to drop passengers at the old location.
Airport security also reported cases of passengers confusing Terminal 3 with Terminal 1. Staff redirected them to travel by taxi to the correct terminal.
Airline staff held signs calling for passengers at risk of missing flights, while those still waiting in queues were prioritised to ensure they boarded on time.
Mobile security forces patrolled Terminal 3, ensuring order and security amidst high passenger volumes.
Tan Son Nhat said it expects to handle an average of 940 flights per day during the 2026 Tet holiday, serving about 145,000 passengers, up 25 per cent compared with the current schedule and 7 per cent compared with the same period during Tet 2025.
The busiest days before Tet are expected on February 13 and 14, with 1,015 flights each day. After Tet, the peak is forecast for February 22 and 23, with 1,027 flights daily.
This Tet season marks the first year Tan Son Nhat is operating with the additional Terminal 3, which has a capacity of 20 million passengers annually. Vietnam Airlines, Bamboo Airways, Pacific Airlines, Vietravel Airlines, Vasco and Sun Phu Quoc Airways have relocated operations to Terminal 3.
Terminal 1 now serves Vietjet only, with the airline moving from the cramped Hall B to the larger Hall A.
