Passengers terrified as Vietnamese carrier makes emergency landing
Panicked passengers screamed and prayed as a Vietjet Air flight has made an emergency landing in Ho Chi Minh City.
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Photo taken by a Vietjet passenger shows other travelers clasp their hands and put their heads on the seat in front as a Vietjet Air flight returns to make an emergency land at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City on November 19.
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The flight departed at 7:05 p.m. and ten minutes after takeoff, alarms rang out in the plane, signaling technical problems. The captain made a quick decision to bring the plane back to Tan Son Nhat for a check, a representative of the budget carrier said on November 20.
A thorough inspection found the warning signals were fake and there was no technical issue with the plane, a Vietjet representative said. The plane resumed normal operations later.
Another flight was arranged for all passengers to continue their journey. The flight delay for technical checks has affected the airline's flight schedule and inflicted greater expenses but safety is always prioritized, the Vietjet representative said.
However, the social media quickly saw pictures and videos of passengers in panic, screaming in fear and praying with folded hands.
Data retrieved from plane-tracking site Flightradar24 showed the Vietjet aircraft had reached a height of 11,000 feet and lowered at 5,000 feet before touching down at the Tan Son Nhat Airport at 8:06 p.m.
A similar incident took place on October 30 with a Vietjet Air plane heading to Busan in South Korea from Hanoi. The plane had to make emergency landing in Hong Kong to check technical issues.
The conclusion was that a wrong warning signal had triggered the incident.
Vietnam's aviation industry has experienced rapid growth in recent years. The country served more than 53 million air passengers in the first half of this year, up 14% from a year ago.
