Around 5:30 p.m., heavy rain swept across TP HCM, disrupting schedules for numerous flights to and from Tan Son Nhat. Many departures were delayed, while a series of arrivals could not land as planned. They were forced to circle in the air or divert to other airports like Phu Quoc and Can Tho due to adverse weather.

Flooding on Nguyen Van Khoi Street, Go Vap district (formerly), afternoon of 11/6. *Photo: Ha Giang*

Hoang Yen, a passenger on Sun PhuQuoc Airways flight 9G855, stated that the plane departed from Noi Bai at 3:30 p.m., expected to land in TP HCM after about two hours. However, upon reaching the Tan Son Nhat area, the plane could not land due to heavy rain.

After circling in the air for over one hour, the captain announced a diversion to Phu Quoc Airport to refuel and await stable weather conditions in TP HCM before continuing the journey. According to the announcement to passengers, the flight would not depart Phu Quoc to return to TP HCM until 9 p.m. that evening.

At Tan Son Nhat Airport, information boards in the terminals continuously displayed numerous flights delayed from 45 minutes to over one hour due to weather impacts that evening.

A Vietnam Airlines representative stated that six of its flights bound for TP HCM had to divert and temporarily land at other airports, awaiting favorable weather before continuing their journeys. Even after weather conditions improved, some flights still experienced knock-on delays. The airline also consistently updated information for passengers.

Meanwhile, Vietjet announced that many flights might require operational adjustments due to adverse weather. Sun PhuQuoc Airways also reported that several flights departing overnight from Tan Son Nhat to Noi Bai and vice versa continued to face knock-on disruptions.

Heavy rain causes chain delays, affecting passengers traveling to and from Tan Son Nhat Airport, evening of 11/6. *Photo: Ha Giang*

The heavy rain also caused deep flooding and traffic congestion on many streets in Go Vap district (formerly), such as Nguyen Van Khoi and Pham Van Chieu; and Quoc Huong in Thu Duc City (formerly). According to the Southern Regional Hydro-Meteorological Center, rainfall in the city this afternoon ranged from 20-100 mm, with some areas exceeding 130 mm.

Giang Anh