diff --git a/microsoft/testsuites/cloud_hypervisor/ch_tests_tool.py b/microsoft/testsuites/cloud_hypervisor/ch_tests_tool.py
index 24e121ed13..687d795d09 100644
--- a/microsoft/testsuites/cloud_hypervisor/ch_tests_tool.py
+++ b/microsoft/testsuites/cloud_hypervisor/ch_tests_tool.py
@@ -404,7 +404,7 @@ def _save_kernel_logs(self, log_path: Path) -> None:
         else:
             dmesg_str = self.node.tools[Dmesg].get_output(force_run=True)
             dmesg_path = log_path / "dmesg"
-            with open(str(dmesg_path), "w") as f:
+            with open(str(dmesg_path), "w", encoding="utf-8") as f:
                 f.write(dmesg_str)