The Scoot plane was en route to Changsha from Singapore on Feb 5 when a technical fault forced it to divert to Ho Chi Minh City. - Photo: ST file
SINGAPORE: Some passengers aboard a Scoot flight bound for Changsha were forced to spend a night at an airport in Vietnam on Wednesday (Feb 5), following technical difficulties that forced the plane to divert to Ho Chi Minh City.
The flight coded TR124 had left Singapore as scheduled just after 6pm on Feb 5 for Changsha city in central China, a journey that would have taken around four hours and 40 minutes.
But pilots detected a technical fault in the Airbus A320 aircraft, and landed the plane uneventfully at the airport in Ho Chi Minh City at 8.38pm, a Scoot spokesperson said in response to media queries.
While the airline arranged hotel accommodation for the affected passengers, immigration regulations meant they had to remain in the airport, the spokesperson said, adding that meals were provided in the airport.
Scoot did not say how many passengers were affected.
One passenger, a Chinese passport holder who declined to be named, told The Straits Times that some of them did not hold a visa to enter Vietnam. Her travelling group had to sleep on airport benches while waiting for information on the plane’s repair.
China passport holders are required to apply for a visa to enter Vietnam.
Another passenger, who wanted to be known only as Ms Bing and possesses a Chinese passport, said that spending the night at the airport was “not a positive experience”.
The diversion and unplanned landing was announced by one of the pilots during the flight, said Bing.
“The flight captain was nice to provide explanations,” she added.
Despite the delays, one passenger was thankful that the emergency landing was a safe one.
“After the fault was announced... some people wept silently, but everyone remained quiet and orderly... A lot of us cheered with a sense of joy and gratitude upon landing,” a passenger who goes by the username Zi Yan on Xiaohongshu wrote in a post.
“Because of the passengers, because of the crew’s calmness in times of crisis and the captain’s superb skills, everyone is safe,” the passenger noted.
A relief flight from Singapore was arranged, and the aircraft departed Ho Chi Minh City for Changsha at 1.12pm local time on Feb 6, said the Scoot spokesperson.
The airline said it will continue to assist the affected passengers where possible. - The Straits Times/ANN
