A Vietnam Airlines aircraft on a repatriation mission lands at Nội Bài Airport, Hà Nội in July.— VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Deputy Prime Minister Trương Hòa Bình has ordered domestic airlines to take action to avoid further incidents that threaten aviation security.

Chairing a meeting on Tuesday which aimed to review civil aviation security and safety in the first seven months, Bình, who is chairman of the National Civil Aviation Security Committee, pointed out several shortcomings that lead to aviation insecurity.

These include thefts, passengers carrying weapons and dangerous items, public disorder and assaults on aviation personnel.

Most of those incidents were caused by human mistakes, he said, asking the Civil Aviation Administration of Việt Nam (CAAV) to inspect direct, indirect causes and effects to seek preventive solutions, especially to supervise the problem-solving process.

Director general of national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines Dương Trí Thành said some people even accessed the booking reservation systems to steal personal information of passengers. Vietnam Airlines staff have discovered many thefts at check-in counters or on flights.

Vũ Thế Phiệt, director-general of the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), said unlicensed taxi services resumed operation in June and July, posing risks to airports’ security.

Deputy Prime Minister Bình ordered the Ministry of Transport to work with the ministries of public security, defence, information and communications to improve quality of information network security and safety. They have been assigned to organise response drills for cybersecurity incidents.

Relevant ministries were urged to step up the progress of establishing police stations at key airports and building air security forces.

The Ministry of Transport must closely monitor contractors and relevant units conducting runway upgrade projects at Nội Bài and Tân Sơn Nhất airports to ensure their progress as well as security and safety, he said.

Airline losses

According to Đinh Việt Thắng, CAAV director and chief of the secretariat of the National Civil Aviation Security Committee, 80 per cent of aircraft managed by domestic airlines are not operating.

In the first seven months of this year, airports nationwide received about 43 million passengers, a year-on-year decrease of 37.5 per cent.

Among 43 million passengers, there were only 7 million people from overseas, down by 71.1 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Vũ Thế Phiệt, director-general of ACV, said the business would face revenue losses of nearly VNĐ600 billion this year.

“In spite of the losses, we still consider security and safety to be the core of the corporation. We focus our investment in upgrading security infrastructure to be prepared for coming scenarios. The corporation has promoted training for security forces,” he said. — VNS