Oops: Two Vietnam Airlines Planes Collide In Hanoi

Intro

On the ground, minor aviation accidents are actually more common than you think. From seeing a JetBlue plane tilt backwards, to a Delta A350 slice through another jet, it's not common, but it's not rare either.

Well, a new one has come out, and this doesn't look pretty for Vietnam Airlines...

The Details

On June 27th, 2025, A Boeing 787-9 carrying 259 passengers bound for Ho Chi Minh City ran its starboard side wingtip into an A321 carrying 129 passengers awaiting clearance to Dien Bien.

The right-side wingtip seemed to collide exactly with the vertical stabilizer of the A321, and caused quite a bit of damage. Below is an image showing the damage caused, and I have to say, it doesn't look pretty.

Yikes... This is not good at all...

As expected, both aircraft are in a maintenance facility while inspections go on to assess the damage. I would presume that the 787-9 will be more likely to fly sooner rather than later, while the A321 might take some time to get back into service...

4 Pilots Grounded

According to many sources, such as VnExpress, this incident has been designated as a Level B, the second highest on the aviation scale.

Due to this, Vietnam Airlines has grounded 4 pilots for the time being as the investigation takes place. Judging from the blurry image above, I have to wonder if this was the fault of the flight deck or ATC. Presumably, they use taxiways S3 and S frequently, so why did this only happen on this particular day?

I am not going to speculate, but it will be interesting to see what the outcome shows.

Final Thoughts

On June 27th, 2025, two Vietnam Airlines planes collided in Hanoi, Vietnam. While the 787-9 seems to have suffered only minor damage, it could be quite a while until the A321 is back in service, due to the damage to the vertical stabilizer. Due to this incident, 4 pilots have been grounded for the time being. Let's see what the verdict turns out, and glad everyone is alright!