Lost on the tarmac: Safety questions raised as Saigon driver ends up near aircraft

A photo of a confused motorbike driver inside Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Son Nhat Airport, with several planes in the background, raised many safety questions after it briefly spread on social media on Thursday.

The picture has already been pulled down from many sites, but several news reports on Friday confirmed its existence.

According to the reports, a man was delivering paint to a construction team inside the airport, who was renovating the facilities for the military-owned Aircraft Repairing Company.

A source of Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper said security officers saw him entering the airport with staff members from the company. But he was allowed to leave the construction site on his own.

The man, however, got lost and reached the civil aviation zone.

Security officers noticed him and stopped him in time, right after the photo was taken.

In the photo, the man appeared befuddled, suggesting he did not know how he ended up near the aircraft.

It's not immediately clear who took and posted the picture online in the first place and why it was removed.

Tan Son Nhat's Aviation Security Center confirmed that incident happened on Thursday afternoon. No further action has been taken.