Hanoi (VNA) – A Boeing 787 from Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City touched down at Long Thanh International Airport in Dong Nai province at 3:58 pm on December 15, marking the success of the new airport’s first technical flight ahead of its official opening scheduled for December 19.
After landing, the aircraft, flight code VN5001, taxied slowly along the runway before entering the apron, where it was greeted with a traditional water salute from two fire tenders to welcome the first plane to land safely at the new airport.
The aircraft was then towed by specialised vehicles to its parking stand, where routine procedures were carried out in the same manner as a commercial flight.
Long Thanh Airport is scheduled to receive its first official flights on December 19, when three aircraft operated by three different airlines will depart from Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, land sequentially at Long Thanh, and then return to Noi Bai.
Long Thanh spans 5,000 hectares in Long Thanh commune, Dong Nai province, and is being developed in three phases.
Phase 1 includes an air traffic control tower, a 4,000m by 75m runway, a passenger terminal with a capacity of 25 million passengers per year, cargo facilities handling up to 1.2 million tonnes annually, and supporting infrastructure. Basic construction is set for completion in 2025, with commercial operations expected in the first half of 2026. The total investment for this phase exceeds 99 trillion VND.
Key infrastructure, including the runway, aircraft parking stands, air traffic control facilities, and technical systems, has been largely completed. The runway lighting system has been successfully tested and meets International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) standards, while the ILS/DME precision landing system ensures safe approaches even in adverse weather conditions./.
