Four air traffic controllers at Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Son Nhat Airport have been punished for issuing erroneous instructions to an aircraft last October, almost causing a disaster.

Phan Khanh, who headed the shift on October 1 when an approaching airplane almost hit a truck on the runway, was fined VND10.5 million (US$500) and suspended for three months.

Trinh Ngoc Huy, the main staff on the shift, was also suspended for three months and fined VND3 million ($142).

Nguyen Tran Vu and Nguyen Hoang Son were also fined VND3 million each.

The disaster almost happened after the controllers wrongly ordered an aircraft arriving from Taiwan to land on a wrong runway where some workers and a truck were removing rubber from the tarmac.

Fortunately, another controller recognized the error and warned his colleague in time.