At noon on the 6th day of Tet (February 22nd), the aviation gateway to the Central region fell into local chaos when a drone (flycam) illegally entered the airspace of Da Nang airport, causing a series of flights from Japan, Hong Kong (China), Singapore and domestic routes to fly many circles in the sky, unable to land.
By more than 12:45 pm, the operating pace gradually returned to normal, but the incident caused a chain reaction, slowing down dozens of other flights on the peak day of the 6th day of Tet.
This is not the first time unmanned aerial vehicles have illegally entered the airspace of Da Nang airport, seriously affecting flight schedules and flight safety. In November 2025, a similar device once flew close to the runway at a distance of only 60-70 m, disrupting 19 flights.
A flycam weighs only a few hundred grams, but when entering the runway, it can cause the entire operating system to change plans.
Airplanes have to circle to wait, consume fuel, disrupt schedules, leading to chain reactions. In the early stages of the year - the time when air travel demand is highest - every small incident can be amplified into major consequences.
More dangerously, if a collision occurs between the flycam and the aircraft's jet engine at high speed, the consequences can be unpredictable.
Faced with this situation, aviation experts and functional agencies proposed a group of drastic solutions such as: installing additional detection sensor systems and electronic suppression devices (wave jammers) to immediately "neutralize" strange flying devices entering the no-fly zone; tightening the licensing of flycam flights in urban areas, especially areas near airports such as Hai Chau, Thanh Khe, Cam Le...
In particular, it is necessary to prosecute criminal liability instead of just administratively sanctioning those who let flycams affect national aviation security.
In the context of an airport located in the middle of a city like Da Nang, the challenge is even greater. Residential space adjacent to the take-off and landing area always poses a risk of violations.
Therefore, in addition to the technical solutions mentioned above, the government and Da Nang International Airport need to simultaneously implement soft management solutions such as mandatory propaganda at points of sale, clear integration of no-fly zones on the control application...
In particular, it is necessary to establish one or more public hotlines to receive urgent information from people when violations are detected. In fact, people are the closest "ears and eyes" to violations.
When a flycam appears abnormally in the sky, the detector usually only records it or posts it on social networks. If there is a clear information receiving point, responding quickly enough and with sufficient authority, each call from a citizen can help promptly prevent a potential risk.
Aviation safety is a public interest, the result of a string of strict control from the ground to the sky. Just one loose link, the entire system can be put in a risky situation. Meanwhile, the rapid development of civil aviation equipment is creating new challenges for urban airspace management.
It is impossible to let the protection of the take-off and landing corridor depend solely on the self-awareness of the operator. It is impossible to expect luck that collisions will not occur. When each flight carries hundreds of people, all risks, even the smallest ones, need to be eliminated early.
Keeping the sky safe is not only the responsibility of the aviation industry, but also the common responsibility of the entire community.
