The situation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) operating illegally in the Da Nang International Airport area is on the rise, especially during the peak period of Tet Nguyen Dan 2026, posing a serious threat to civil aviation safety.
On March 1st, according to information from Da Nang International Airport, during the period from February 17th to February 24th, 2026 - the peak travel time for Tet, functional forces discovered 6 cases of UAVs illegally entering the no-fly zone, concentrated near the beginning of the runway.
The incidents forced many flights to fly waiting in the air, temporarily suspend operations, change approach methods or switch landing directions to reserve airports.
In total, more than 83 flights were affected by schedules. Not only causing economic damage to airlines, the incidents also negatively impacted passenger psychology and the destination image of Da Nang City, a locality that is positioned as a "tourism city, a livable city".
According to the assessment of functional sectors, illegal UAV activities in the take-off and landing corridor are particularly dangerous acts. Even a small aircraft appearing in the approach area can cause collision risks, directly threatening flight safety, especially in conditions of high operating frequency during holidays and Tet.
Immediately after receiving the information, Da Nang International Airport urgently deployed initial response measures, and at the same time closely coordinated with Da Nang City Police, Army forces and local authorities to handle it.
Although the time of the incident coincided with the Lunar New Year holiday, the Director of Da Nang City Police directly directed professional units, especially the Professional and Offline Technical Department (PA06), to deploy forces and equipment to track, verify and prevent cases of illegal UAV control.
As a result, functional forces have detected and handled 7 violations, and at the same time seized related exhibits. Timely handling contributes to ensuring absolute safety for flight operations to and from Da Nang International Airport, minimizing damage.
Representatives of Da Nang International Airport said that the unit will continue to coordinate with functional forces to strengthen propaganda, control and strictly handle acts of illegal UAV use in the no-fly zone, in order to ensure aviation safety and maintain the image of a safe destination of the city.
