Lâm Đồng provincial leaders and representatives of departments and agencies present flowers and extend warm wishes to the first passengers. Photos from Lâm Đồng Province newspaper

HCM CITY — Liên Khương International Airport returned to service on Wednesday morning as flight VN1380, operated by the national carrier Vietnam Airlines, landed safely after departing from Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport in HCM City.

The flight touched down at exactly 7.05am and was welcomed with a ceremonial water cannon salute, marking the airport's official return to operations after more than five months of suspension for comprehensive repairs and upgrades.

On board were 200 passengers and crew members, including 178 passengers who are natives of Lâm Đồng Province or tourists living and working in HCM City.

The Lâm Đồng Provincial People's Committee, in co-ordination with the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), organised a ceremony to welcome the first flight back into service.

Đặng Hồng Sỹ, Permanent Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee presenting gifts to passengers.

Present to greet passengers were Hồ Văn Mười, member of the Party Central Committee, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Đặng Hồng Sỹ, Permanent Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee; Lưu Văn Trung, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial People's Council; along with representatives of provincial departments, sectors and localities.

Provincial leaders presented fresh bouquets of flowers and extended their best wishes to travellers arriving in Lâm Đồng, known for its majestic highlands landscape, the resort town Đà Lạt, and following the administrative merger last year, also coastal tourism.

The welcoming ceremony marks a milestone of special significance, opening a new phase of development for the airport while providing impetus for the socio-economic development of Lâm Đồng Province and the Central Highlands region.

Liên Khương Airport is expected to receive a further 27 flights from other provinces to Đà Lạt throughout Wednesday, with four additional flights carrying more than 700 passengers scheduled for the morning alone.

Passengers took the opportunity to take photos to capture the moment of landing at Liên Khương Airport on its first day of reopening.

The airport had officially closed temporarily on March 4, 2026, for the launch of a runway repair and upgrade project. The runway and taxiway rehabilitation project, with ACV as the investor, is being carried out in Đức Trọng Commune, Lâm Đồng Province.

The project is a Class I aviation infrastructure work with a total investment of more than VNĐ1 trillion (US$38.5 million). Its construction scope includes the complete repair of the runway, taxiways, runway end safety areas, technical infrastructure systems and flight operations equipment.

Following its resumption of operations, Liên Khương International Airport is expected to handle an average of about 36 to 40 departure and arrival flights per day, connecting with localities including Hà Nội, HCM City, Đà Nẵng, Vinh, Cần Thơ, and Hải Phòng. — VNS