Long Thanh airport will now open on 24 December, not 1 December: 366 flights a week to start as developer ACV cuts 3,700 jobs

When does Long Thanh airport open? On 24 December, according to the latest plan. Airports Corporation of Vietnam, the developer known as ACV, told local authorities that Long Thanh International Airport is expected to open to commercial flights at midnight on 24 December 2026, initially handling up to 366 flights a week, 322 of them domestic and 44 international, VnExpress reported. That is more than three weeks later than the 1 December start date reported in September.

The new date gives the project a little more breathing room after a government order for round the clock construction. Behind the scenes, ACV has also been reshaping itself: it has cut nearly 3,700 staff this year, while construction costs for the airport's first phase jumped 29 percent in nine months. For travellers heading to southern Vietnam over Christmas and Lunar New Year, the gateway is getting closer, but it will start small.

Why the date moved to 24 December

ACV gave the 24 December date in a notice sent to the Dong Nai People's Committee, asking the province to have relevant agencies help the corporation finish preparations so the launch runs smoothly and safely. In September, the Ministry of Construction's fee decision had pointed to commercial operations starting on 1 December, as we reported in our earlier piece on Long Thanh's delays, procurement scandal and 25 dollar fee.

The shift follows a difficult autumn. In early October the government ordered round the clock construction, citing labour and material shortages, payment delays and rising costs, and Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Tuc said some contractors were making almost no progress. An extra three weeks gives contractors, airlines and ground staff more time for testing, which matters more than hitting a symbolic date.

Opening on Christmas Eve also places the airport just ahead of the busiest travel season in Vietnam. The Lunar New Year holiday in early 2027 brings a surge of domestic travel and overseas Vietnamese returning home, a demanding first test for any new airport.

How flights will start at Long Thanh

The launch will be gradual. Domestic airlines will start operating at the new airport in stages. Vietnam Airlines is expected to fly the Long Thanh to Hanoi route and several international routes, while Vietjet plans domestic services linking Long Thanh with major economic and tourism centres, VnExpress reported. Many international airlines have also voiced interest in flying to Long Thanh, according to ACV.

Management agencies, airport operators and airlines are jointly drawing up flight allocations, taking into account slot coordination at both Long Thanh and Tan Son Nhat International Airport, which sits inside Ho Chi Minh City and has long operated above capacity. At 366 flights a week, or about 52 a day, the new airport will initially handle only a fraction of the traffic that Tan Son Nhat carries.

That is by design. A soft opening with a limited schedule lets operators fix problems with baggage systems, security, air traffic control and ground transport before traffic ramps up. The first phase is designed for 25 million passengers a year, with capacity rising to 100 million once the project is complete.

Long Thanh will open with about 52 flights a day. That is not a failure, it is a soft launch, and Vietnam would be wise to keep it that way until the systems prove themselves.

Ground transport will be part of that test. Travellers arriving late at night on early flights will need taxis, ride hailing cars or buses for the drive to the city, and any bottleneck at the terminal kerb will be the first thing passengers notice.

ACV cuts 3,700 jobs while costs climb

ACV has been shrinking its workforce as it builds Vietnam's biggest airport. The company cut 1,360 employees in the third quarter, bringing total reductions this year to nearly 3,700, according to VnExpress. Its headcount fell from more than 10,800 at the start of the year to just over 7,110 at the end of September, the third straight quarter of decline.

The cuts followed a management restructuring. ACV said in its annual report that it now has 12 departments under its board and executive management, down from 17, and streamlining its structure was the first item on its corporate governance agenda for the year. Payments to employees fell about 13 percent to more than 2.63 trillion dong, about 101.92 million dollars, in the first nine months.

Construction spending is moving the other way. By the end of September, construction costs for the project's first phase totalled nearly 44.13 trillion dong, up 29 percent from the start of the year. The overall project is valued at about 336.63 trillion dong, roughly 13 billion dollars, across three phases.

ACV's finances and what investors should watch

ACV, one of Vietnam's most valuable listed companies, runs most of the country's airports. In the first nine months it recorded revenue of more than 19.22 trillion dong, roughly unchanged from a year earlier, and pre tax profit of nearly 10.8 trillion dong, a slight decline but well above its full year target. Lower staff costs helped offset flat revenue.

For investors, Long Thanh is both ACV's biggest opportunity and its biggest risk. A smooth opening would lift traffic and revenue for years, while further delays or operational problems would weigh on costs and reputation. The key questions around the launch include:

• Whether the terminal and systems are fully ready on 24 December
• How quickly international airlines move routes from Tan Son Nhat
• Whether road links to Ho Chi Minh City cope with new traffic
• How the procurement investigation affects the project
• Whether construction costs keep rising in the final weeks

Ho Chi Minh City is also building road links to the airport, including a multi level interchange connecting roads to seaports and Long Thanh. Rail links are not expected for several years, so the road journey will shape early passenger experience.

What it means for travellers

For travellers, the practical message is to check departure airports carefully from late December. Long Thanh is about 40 kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City, so the trip will take longer than to Tan Son Nhat. International passengers departing from Long Thanh will pay a 25 dollar service fee, 5 dollars more than at Tan Son Nhat, under the Ministry of Construction's decision.

For Vietnam, the opening is a symbol of its infrastructure push and its ambition for double digit growth. Getting the first months right will matter more than the date itself, because a smooth start will build confidence in other mega projects, from high speed rail to new urban railway lines.

Long Thanh's opening has slipped to Christmas Eve, but with a modest 366 weekly flights the airport is set for a careful soft launch rather than a big bang. ACV is cutting staff while construction costs climb, and its first months of operation will be a key test of Vietnam's ability to deliver the infrastructure behind its growth ambitions.