Departure
96%
vs 95%
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Noi Bai International Airport is Vietnam's principal gateway to the north, serving Hanoi from a large site at Soc Son, some 35 km northeast of the city centre. It is the country's second-busiest airport, home to Vietnam Airlines and a base for Bamboo Airways, VietJet Air and Vietravel Airlines, and offers a sim pilot two long parallel hard-surfaced runways each equipped with ILS.
Noi Bai International Airport is the main airport serving Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, and is operated by the Airports Corporation of Vietnam. It is the second-busiest airport in the country by passenger traffic after Tan Son Nhat in Ho Chi Minh City, and serves as the principal hub for Vietnam Airlines as well as an operating base for Bamboo Airways, VietJet Air and Vietravel Airlines. For a simulator pilot it offers a substantial international field with two widely spaced parallel runways, full ILS coverage and dense Southeast Asian air traffic, making it a satisfying destination for heavy or regional jet operations into northern Vietnam.
The airport lies in Nội Bài (formerly Phú Minh commune, Sóc Sơn district), about 35 km northeast of downtown Hanoi, reached via the Nhật Tân Bridge or National Road 3. It sits immediately south of the former Phúc Yên Air Base. Coordinates are 21.2217N, 105.8060E at a field elevation of 39 feet. As a major international airport it sits within controlled airspace served by multiple approach, departure and area control sectors, reflecting the volume of scheduled traffic converging on Hanoi.
Noi Bai has two parallel physical runways. 11R/29L is the longer of the pair at roughly 12,727/12,725 feet, a hard surface fitted with ILS on both ends. 11L/29R measures roughly 10,740/10,741 feet, also a hard surface with lighting and ILS on both ends. The pairing gives simultaneous independent approach and departure capability typical of a large international hub.
Noi Bai is served by an extensive set of frequencies reflecting its status as a major hub: approach/departure control on 120.075, 121.0, 125.1 and 126.575 MHz; ATIS on 127.0 MHz; area control on 123.3, 125.9, 132.3 and 133.65 MHz; delivery on 119.25 MHz, with delivery/tower also shared on 119.25 and 125.225 MHz; ground on 121.65 and 121.9 MHz; and tower on 118.4 and 118.9 MHz. Both runway pairs are equipped with ILS, supporting instrument approaches in the low cloud and poor visibility conditions that can affect the Red River Delta.
The airport was developed immediately south of the Phúc Yên Air Base and opened on 2 January 1978. In its early years civil operations were limited to flights between communist-bloc countries, with international services from China, East Germany and the Soviet Union, later expanding to other Southeast Asian destinations after national unification. These flights were handled by three small terminal buildings used for international departures, domestic traffic, and international arrivals respectively, which were repeatedly renovated before eventually proving too small for demand. A new terminal was completed in 2001, after which the old buildings were demolished to make way for the current cargo terminal. The airport became a SkyTeam hub in 2010 following Vietnam Airlines joining that alliance. A new international terminal, Terminal 2, was built from 2012 with support from a Japanese ODA loan, designed by Japan Airport Consultants and constructed by Taisei Corporation; it opened on 4 January 2015 together with a new expressway link to central Hanoi via the Nhật Tân Bridge.
Noi Bai now operates two passenger terminals: Terminal 1 handles domestic flights, while Terminal 2, opened in 2015, handles all international traffic, alongside a dedicated cargo terminal. The airport is the principal hub for Vietnam Airlines and an operating base for Bamboo Airways, VietJet Air and Vietravel Airlines, and it has continued to expand capacity, with Terminal 2 undergoing further enlargement works aimed at raising its handling capacity from 10 to 15 million passengers a year by 2026.
