The Civil Aviation Authority has recently sent a document to the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) requesting the control of foreign objects and FOD on the takeoff and landing runways, taxiways, and aircraft parking areas. This action comes in the context of consecutive incidents where airplanes encountered nails at Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat airports.
Accordingly, ACV has directed its airports to enhance inspections and cleanliness of the runways, strictly adhere to the runway and apron condition inspection procedures to promptly detect and clean up FOD, especially at Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat airports, as well as at airports undergoing construction activities in the apron area.
Furthermore, ACV needs to review the data and related indicators regarding foreign objects and FOD, as well as implement risk identification, assessment, and determine the level of warning for airports experiencing an increase in foreign objects and FOD indicators.
The organization should identify and determine high-risk areas and develop specific solutions according to each area/zone or specific unit if necessary.
In addition, ACV needs to fulfill its role as the airport operator. This includes timely requesting ground service providers and construction units in the apron area to tightly control the FOD situation arising from ground service vehicles, construction activities, and technical inspections using appropriate equipment and tools within the apron area.
The relevant departments and employees working in the apron area should review the procedures for managing tools and equipment brought into the apron and enhance the awareness of workers in preventing, detecting, and handling FOD on the apron.
The Northern, Central, and Southern Airports Authorities are strengthening inspection, monitoring, and strict enforcement of regulations to ensure the safety and cleanliness of the runways by the units operating in the apron area if any violations occur.
Recently, there have been several cases where airplanes encountered nails and foreign objects that damaged the engines at Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat airports.
On July 3rd at 9:50 am, Noi Bai Airport received information from Da Nang Airport that the mechanics discovered a broken fan blade of the second engine of an Airbus A320 aircraft after it flew from Hanoi.
Similarly, another incident of an airplane hitting a nail was discovered at Tan Son Nhat Airport on July 3rd. The apron management unit inspected the condition of the runway and taxiway along the landing route of the aircraft but found no abnormalities.
Earlier, at 8:32 pm on June 30th, the airport mechanics at Noi Bai Airport found a 1 cm long, 0.2 cm diameter screw embedded deep into the left main landing gear tire of an Airbus A321 aircraft that had landed from Phu Quoc.
Furthermore, on June 28th, the mechanics inspected an Airbus A350 aircraft scheduled to serve a flight from Noi Bai to Melbourne (Australia) the next day and discovered a thumbtack-sized nail embedded in the left main landing gear tire. The nail was 1.5 cm long, with a 1 cm head diameter and a 0.3 cm shaft diameter.
@Zing News
Source: Vietnam Insider