HÀ NỘI — The Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV) has not imposed a flight ban on routes to the Republic of Korea (RoK) and Japan during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, CAAV Director-General Đinh Việt Thắng has said.
The announcement came after some websites published posts saying that the authorities have stopped flights between Việt Nam and the RoK and Japan, following a slew of positive cases discovered in the two East Asian countries in recent days.

Thắng said the information is a complete fabrication, and the CAAV has worked with the police force to investigate the source of the fake news.

The national flag carrier Việt Nam Airlines has also sent out a notice clarifying that flights to RoK and Japan have been operating normally in accordance with the schedule allowed by the aviation authority.

If any schedule adjustment is made, the airline will fully inform passengers via its website or other official channels, the airline said.

For further information, customers should visit the airline’s website www.vietnamairlines.com, Facebook fanpage www.facebook.com/VietnamAirlines, and contact ticket offices or customer service at 1900 1100.

Carrying out the Prime Minister’s Directive No 06/CT-TTg dated January 31, on intensifying preventive measures during the COVID-19 outbreak, the CAAV announced a temporary halt to all flights to and from China from 13:00 on February 1 (local time) until further notice.

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi during a meeting on Thursday with ASEAN member countries called for a resumption of links with China.

However, Việt Nam said it would only lift the flight ban when the outbreak situation in China is deemed to be under control. — VNS