This passenger obviously doesn't read VNAFlyer.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) imposed a 4 million VND (~$183 USD) fine on Nguyen Canh Dinh, who claimed that he did not see the No Smoking signs, and only smoked a little bit.
The crew was alerted when the smoke detector in the lavatory was triggered.
The CAAV has the authority to levy fines up to 5 million VND, which is a minute amount compared to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) fine of up to $5,000 USD, or over 100 million VND.
The CAAV also recently pledged to bring civil aviation standards in Vietnam up to a level acceptable to the FAA, which would open up the possibility of direct flights from Vietnam to the U.S. Currently, Vietnamese carriers are not allowed into U.S. airspace, and U.S.-based carriers are not allowed to start direct service into Vietnam.
