Vietnam grounds Tupolev fleet

Mon, 08 Sep 1997 | Source: REUTERS

HANOI (Reuter): Vietnam Airlines will ground its Tupolev aircraft from today pending an investigation into the crash of one of its Tu-134Bs in Cambodia, an official at the national carrier said yesterday.

He was confirming a television news report which said the airline was suspending flights by the 1970s-era Soviet aircraft on both domestic and international routes, but gave no explanation.

Flight VN815 from Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City crashed just short of Phnom Penh airport Wednesday, killing all but two of the 66 people on board. Most of the victims were from Taiwan, South Korea and Hong Kong.

Vietnam Airlines had originally said after the crash that it had no plans to withdraw the four Tupolevs still operating in its mostly modern fleet.

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