The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam on Monday asked the Northern Airports Authority to suspend aircraft arrivals and departures at three airports in the northern region on Tuesday to respond to typhoon Talim, the first storm to hit Vietnam this year.

In particular, Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi will halt flights from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm, and Van Don International Airport in Quang Ninh Province and Cat Bi International Airport in Hai Phong City will close from 9:00 am to 7:00 pm on Tuesday.

The CAAV also required airlines to adjust their flight schedules whenever possible, moving flights up or postponing them until after the period during which bad weather conditions are forecast.

Air carriers must ask pilots to comply with safety principles before and after the storm makes landfall, and choose back-up airports in the north-central region southward.

Aircraft at Van Don and Cat Bi airports should be relocated to other airports. The operator of Cat Bi Airport has to work with Green Planet Airways JSC to fasten aircraft parked there.

The CAAV told the Northern Airports Authority to regularly get updates on typhoon Talim from the Aviation Meteorological Center, and proactively adjust the opening and closing times of airports in the affected areas in line with regulations.

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has canceled four flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Hai Phong City and two flights between Da Nang City and Hai Phong on Tuesday due to the impact of typhoon Talim.

The air carrier rescheduled a flight from Hai Phong to Ho Chi Minh City at 6:35 am on Tuesday to 11 pm on Monday.

It also delayed a flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Hai Phong from 6:25 pm on Tuesday to 3:45 am on Wednesday, another flight on the route from 4:55 pm to 7:50 pm on Tuesday, and a flight in the opposite direction from 6:55 pm to 10:00 pm on Tuesday.

Typhoon Talim, the first storm in the East Vietnam Sea this year, was located 70 kilometers east and southeast of Mong Cai City, Quang Ninh Province, northern Vietnam at 9:00 am on Tuesday, packing winds at level 9-10 (75-102 kilometers per hour), gusting up to level 12, the National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting reported.

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