Prime Minister Highlights Economic Impact and Competitiveness Challenges of Tan Son Nhat Airport

Vietnam’s largest airport, Tan Son Nhat in Ho Chi Minh City, is facing persistent overloading issues that are negatively affecting the country’s competitiveness, according to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh. Despite previous upgrades, the airport continues to struggle in meeting the growing demand for passenger and cargo transportation. Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony for new terminals at Tan Son Nhat Airport and Dong Nai’s Long Thanh Airport, the Prime Minister emphasized that by 2024, the airport’s capacity will be more than twice its limit, leading to deteriorating infrastructure, reduced service quality, and a decline in the country’s competitiveness.

The overcrowding issue at Tan Son Nhat Airport was evident when a flight carrying the Minister of Transport had to be diverted to Nha Trang. Since 2017, the airport has been handling 36 million passengers annually, exceeding its designed capacity of 25 million passengers. The construction of the new terminals at both Tan Son Nhat and Long Thanh airports is expected to transform Vietnam into a major regional and global transport hub, enhancing national development and improving competitiveness.

The Long Thanh Airport terminal, spanning 150 hectares and costing VND35 trillion (US$1.5 billion), will feature a lotus-shaped design with artificial waterfalls and gardens. It is scheduled to open in 2026. The T3 terminal at Tan Son Nhat Airport, with a construction cost of VND10.99 trillion, will take 20 months to complete and will include high-rise parking lots, a viaduct system, and other supporting infrastructure and services. Once operational, the T3 terminal will serve as one of the two domestic terminals and accommodate up to 20 million passengers annually.