Munich Airport repaired slight damage to runway-end approach lighting after a Vietnam Airlines Boeing 787-9 departure incident on Saturday and reopened the runway at 07:00 on Sunday after overnight inspection and cleanup work. The aircraft’s very late rotation appears to have carried it beyond the runway end, where it may have contacted lighting infrastructure before returning to service.
Airport teams also collected tyre debris and fixed minor runway-surface damage during the response. The aircraft, operating the Munich-Hanoi service, later returned to the airport and was grounded after the abnormal takeoff sequence prompted further checks.
Germany’s aviation accident investigators have been brought in, indicating the event is being treated as more than a routine maintenance issue. The incident briefly affected runway availability at one of Europe’s busiest hubs and drew attention to the vulnerability of equipment positioned beyond runway thresholds.