Aeroplanes at Nội Bài International Airport in Hà Nội.— VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Anh

HÀ NỘI — Minister of Transport Nguyễn Văn Thể has sent an urgent message to order agencies to fix shortcomings in taking off and landing slots for aeroplanes at Nội Bài and Tân Sơn Nhất international airports.

Aeroplanes currently have to queue for up to an hour to take off and fly around for dozens of minutes to wait to land as the two airports have temporarily closed one runway each for repairs since June 29, he said.

Thể asked the Civil Aviation Authority of Việt Nam to evenly divide slots for taking off and landing at every time of day to fix the situation.

He also told relevant agencies to increase the number of flights at nearby airports such as Cát Bi and Thanh Hoá or Cần Thơ and Cam Ranh to reduce overloading on Nội Bài and Tân Sơn Nhất.

The civil aviation authority was asked to strictly deal with airlines that failed to take off and land at their appointed times, he added.

The agency was told to work with relevant parties to notify passengers about their flight, check-in time and encourage passengers to book flights from and to nearby airports instead of Nội Bài and Tân Sơn Nhất international airports to reduce overloading and congestion, he said.

The slots for taking off and landing would be revoked if any airline was found to change the registered taking off and landing time, he said.

The projects to upgrade runways in Nội Bài International Aiport and Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport cost more than VNĐ4 trillion (US$171.5 million) and are expected to be completed by the end of 2021. — VNS