Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Ngoc Dong has said safety and operations of airports nationwide have been still ensured despite the recent COVID-19 outbreak.

During the Government’s regular press conference on February 2, Dong said not only airport authorities but agencies and localities concerned as well as the Government are also involved in epidemic prevention and control at airports.

Responding to the press's queries about whether the proposed testing of 3,200 staff members at Noi Bai airport would affect the airport's operation, the official affirmed that operations of Noi Bai international airport have been unaffected with F1, F2 cases under quarantine.

The Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) is managing 22 airports nationwide so that it could transfer staff among airports to maintain their operations. Airport staff undergo regular health check-up and suspected or high-risk cases will be tested and quarantined immediately, he said.

Earlier the same day, the Noi Bai international airport sent a document to the Health Ministry, Transport Ministry and Hanoi's Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control asking to conduct COVID-19 testing for nearly 3,200 staff working there.

According to the airport authority, there are 16 F1 cases related to an F0 case travelling to Japan via Noi Bai airport, while Van Don airport in Quang Ninh has hundreds of F2 cases linked to a security officer found to be infected with SARS-CoV-2 recently.

About the Cat Linh – Ha Dong urban metro project, Deputy Minister Dong said it started trial run from December 12, 2020 and hand-over is scheduled for late March 2021.