Flashing-light kites disrupt 21 flights at Vietnam's busiest airport Tan Son Nhat

Flashlight-equipped kites disrupted 21 flights at Vietnam's busiest airport, Tan Son Nhat, on an evening in late 2025. The three kites posed a threat by flying 2.5 km away from the airport, directly along its flight approach path at an altitude of about 400 meters. In response, the Air Traffic Flow Coordination Center temporarily restricted flights heading to Tan Son Nhat, causing significant disruptions.

A total of 21 flights were affected, with several aircraft en route from Pleiku, Da Nang, and Cam Ranh instructed to enter holding patterns for safety. Four flights at Tan Son Nhat delayed takeoff, and one heading to the airport had to make an emergency landing in Cam Ranh. The incident lasted over 10 minutes before authorities coordinated with local military units to address the airspace violations and resume normal operations shortly after.

Tan Son Nhat, located 8 kilometers north of Ho Chi Minh City, handles around 50 million passengers annually. Its proximity to dense urban areas often results in flight operations being affected by UAVs, kites, and laser beams. In 2025, Tan Son Nhat handled over 42.4 million passengers on 255,376 flights, with a peak of more than 177,000 passengers on 1,069 flights on a single day in February.

The airport is not alone in Vietnam in dealing with unauthorized flying objects; similar incidents have occurred at other major airports. In June, a UAV caused delays for 16 flights at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, and earlier in March, a UAV disrupted operations at Cat Bi International Airport in Hai Phong for about four hours, forcing four flights to divert to Noi Bai.

Violations under Vietnamese regulations result in fines of up to VND40 million (US$1,520) for individuals operating UAVs, including drones and camera-equipped drones, in restricted airspace and disrupting aviation operations.