On the evening of 02 January, an urgent message searching for a missing family member was shared on social media and the OFFB forum. The person reported missing was a 64-year-old male tourist, a Philippine national, who had gone missing in the Hoan Kiem Lake area after leaving without his phone and personal identification documents.
At around the same time, at Noi Bai International Airport – Terminal T2, an elderly man stepped out of a taxi, looking distraught and disoriented. It was Mr. Junnie Reyes.
At that moment, he had less than VND 200,000 in small change left in his pocket. He could not recall the name of his hotel, nor the way back—he only knew to ask the driver to take him to the one place whose name he remembered: “Airport.”
A long night of waiting
Mr. Junnie arrived at Noi Bai on the night of 02 January. However, as it coincided with the holiday period, combined with a significant language barrier (he spoke his local language and had limited English), seeking immediate assistance proved challenging. He struggled to explain his wish to contact the authorities or the Embassy.
With no other option, the 64-year-old passenger remained at the airport, anxiously waiting until the next day.
A breakthrough on 03 January
On the morning of 03 January, the “knot” was finally untied. Minh, an intern (Customer Care Ambassador), noticed his confusion and guided him to the Information Desk on Level 1, where he met Ms. Hoang Thu Thuy.
Seeing the passenger exhausted and clearly lost, Ms. Thuy understood that this was not a situation that could be resolved with a few quick questions. Together with Minh, she patiently used pen and paper, gestures, and asked him to write down words one by one, while also using Google Translate to interpret his meaning. After considerable effort, they were able to piece the story together: he had been separated from his tour group, could not remember the hotel, and came to the airport simply to… wait for his family members to arrive so he could reunite with them when they returned to fly home.
As soon as a lead was identified, Ms. Thuy immediately contacted the Airport Security unit and the Border Gate Police for support. At that time, two Border Gate Police officers—Nguyen Quang Minh and Tran Anh Tuan—used their professional expertise to quickly check immigration records, identify the correct hotel where the group was staying, and make direct contact.
At that moment, the hotel and the family “broke into relief”—they, too, had been extremely worried, splitting up and searching for him for more than a day.
A complete and heartfelt ending
The letter of appreciation later sent to the Airport became the most meaningful conclusion to an anxiety-filled journey. Although there was an endearingly minor mix-up in the name of a department in the letter, the gratitude expressed for Minh’s attentiveness, Ms. Thuy’s patience, and the Border Gate Police’s professionalism was sincere and unmistakable.
A situation that seemed like “finding a needle in a haystack” was resolved through the observation, responsibility, and dedication of the people at Noi Bai International Airport.
