Vietnam’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAAV) has delayed plans to perform extensive maintenance at some of the country’s largest airports, including Saigon’s Tan Son Nhat.
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According to Thanh Nien, the CAAV has backtracked on their maintenance proposal after some air carriers voiced their opposition as they stood to lose US$69.6 million as a result of the work.
“The CAAV has yet to determine the time for the repair project to start,” the aviation authority said in a press release Tuesday night.
“The CAAV and ACV will officially report to the Ministry of Transport [about the issue] on April 2,” it added.
The repairs would have focused on upgrading airport runways between April 10 and June 25, encompassing major national holidays and the peak of the summer tourist season.
Had it gone into effect, the plan would have resulted in thousands of flight cancelations, with around 80 flights cut (out of 360 total) and 10,000 passengers unable to fly each day at Tan Son Nhat alone.
In a report from Tuoi Tre this morning, it looks like the plan is to simply delay the runway maintenance by one month to avoid interfering with holiday travel. CAAV chief Lai Xuan Thanh pledged that, "No matter what plan for the upgrade is adopted, we ensure there will be no impact on the travel of people during the April-May holiday.”
