A Vietnam Airlines flight en route from Da Nang to Ha Noi had to divert to Laos on June 7 after it could not make a landing at Ha Noi’s Noi Bai International Airport due to bad weather.

The Airbus A330 aircraft, coded VN168, with 205 passengers onboard took off from Da Nang International Airport at 16:00.

Two hours later, the crew announced, due to bad weather conditions, the plane had to divert to Laos where it landed safely at Vientiane International Airport at 18:15, according to a passenger.

The crew detected a technical problem at around 20:00 with passengers still onboard. Food and water were served while passengers were reassured by flight attendants, as many of them felt the temperature increasing in the cabin.

They were allowed to disembark at 21:30 in order for ground crew to inspect the plane.

A domestic Vietnam Airlines flight en route from Da Nang to Ha Noi had to divert to Laos due to bad weather. (Photo: VNA)

After the technical issues were resolved, some 40 minutes later, the flight captain came to personally apologise to the passengers for the hours of waiting and inconvenience, and invited them to board the aircraft again for the return flight to Ha Noi.

However, only half of the passengers agreed to board, while the remaining decided to wait at the airport to take another flight the next morning.

An Airbus A321 jet dispatched by Vietnam Airlines brought them back to Noi Bai Airport at 11:50 AM on June 8 before they were transported back to downtown Ha Noi on a free shuttle bus.

The carrier sent its apologies to the affected passengers after the incident, affirming that it had taken all necessary measures to ensure their safety.

(Source: VNA)