A VietJet Air flight landed at the wrong airport last week, leading to its crew being suspended.
On June 19, VietJet Air Flight VJ8861 landed at Cam Ranh airport near Nha Trang City in central Vietnam. It landed safely, but it was at the wrong airport. The plane was supposed to land at Liên Khương airport near Đà Lạt City in the country's Central Highlands. Instead, it landed 62 miles away, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The budget airline, which operates 15 Airbus A320 single aisle planes is investigating the incident and does not currently have an explanation for how such a big mistake could happen. The plane was carrying 180 passengers at the time of the incident.
"We are working in close partnership with the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam to thoroughly investigate the incident and ensure that this does not happen again," the airline said according to the WSJ.
While the investigation goes on, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam suspended all of the members of the crew on Flight VJ8861. An early investigation shows that the crew, including the pilots, the flight coordinator and the ground staff didn't follow proper instructions.
"This is a serious incident...posing [a] threat to aviation safety," the regulator said.
VietJet Air is a relatively new airline and has only been in operation since 2011. VietJet Air flies to more than 10 destination in Vietnam, as well as to Bangkok and Singapore. The airline is looking to grow at it ordered 63 Airbus A320 jets and the purchase rights for 30 more in a $9.1 billion deal at the Singapore Airshow this past February.
VietJet Air doesn't have an serious incidents on its record but the airline was fined by the Civil Aviation Authority in 2012 for holding an in-flight Hula dance party performed by beauty pagent contestants without asking for permission from the regulator.
Planes landing at the wrong airport is very rare, but it is not unheard of. In November 2013, a Boeing 747 cargo plane accidentally landed at the wrong Kansas Airport. It landed at a smaller airport about 10 miles away from McConnell Air Force Base, where it was supposed to land. The pilots claim the smaller airport confused them.
