VietNamNet Bridge - Investing heavily in new-generation aircraft and concentrating on upgrading the quality of services are part of Vietnam Airlines' efforts to upgrade its position in global airline rankings. PM Nguyen Tan Dung on Vietnam Airlines' first Airbus 350-900 aircraft on July 2. Earlier this week, Airbus delivered to Vietnam Airlines the first A350 XWB aircraft put into commercial exploitation. According to sources from Airbus, Vietnam will be the second country in the world using this model, with four units to be delivered in 2015. These aircraft will be operated on routes from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City, Seoul (South Korea) and Hanoi/HCM City to Paris (France). Along with the A350, in the second half this year Vietnam Airlines will receive four Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners. This is considered a step in the plan to replace the entire fleet of widebody aircraft with 33 units in the period from now until 2019. The national carrier will also launch the new brand identity, … [Read more...]
Vietnam Airlines moves to join SkyTeam alliance
Vietnam Airlines moves to join SkyTeam alliance By Mong Binh and Thanh Trung - The Saigon Times Daily HCMC, HANOI - Vietnam Airlines signed an agreement with SkyTeam on Wednesday in a move to join the global airline alliance, probably next year, enabling the national flag carrier to fly to more markets and provide more benefits to passengers. Pham Ngoc Minh, general director of Vietnam Airlines, described the agreement the airline signed in Hanoi as important as it was the first step for the carrier to become a full member of SkyTeam, hopefully in 2010. Minh added Vietnam Airlines would be able to provide passengers with thorough services in accordance with international standards of SkyTeam when the airline became a full member of the world's second largest airline alliance after STAR Alliance. Vietnam Airlines said in the statement that it was the only partner airline in Southeast Asia that SkyTeam had chosen to become its member. Speaking to reporters after the signing on … [Read more...]
Vietnam Airlines to fly to Myanmar
Vietnam Airlines to fly to Myanmar By Mong Binh - The Saigon Times Daily HCMC - Vietnam Airlines will launch direct service between Hanoi and Myanmar's capital city of Yangon on March 2 to meet the increasing demand for air travel between the two ASEAN member countries. However, the airline plans to operate much bigger aircraft Airbus A320 and increase frequency to five flights a week in the winter schedule, from October 25 till March 25. To encourage guests to fly on the new route, Vietnam Airlines is offering a promotional airfare of US$250 for individuals to book at its ticket offices and agents, as well as at www.vietnamairlines.com until March 31. The valid travel period for the promotional tickets is from March 2 to 31. The Hanoi-Yangon service is part of Vietnam Airlines' strategy to expand its presence and network in Asia, especially in ASEAN. Currently, the carrier has flights to Thailand, Singapore and other member nations of the regional grouping. Despite challenges last … [Read more...]
Vietnam Airlines unveils potential strategic investors
Vietnam Airlines unveils potential strategic investors Lan Nhi By Lan Nhi - The Saigon Times Daily HANOI - Vietnam Airlines Corporation has plans to select one strategic investor or more from the corporate candidates in aviation and finance sectors at its initial public offering (IPO) later this year as approved by the Prime Minister. Pham Ngoc Minh, CEO of Vietnam Airlines, told reporters in Hanoi on Monday that selection priorities will be given to a big airline with strong financial capacity and sharing same business goals with the State-owned corporation. Financial institutions will have great chance of being selected as strategic investors of Vietnam Airlines if they want to be with the corporation in a long term rather than a short term as its return on assets has been low in recent years, standing at a mere 0.25% last year. At the news briefing, Minh mentioned Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) as a candidate for a 20% stake at Vietnam Airlines in the IPO. However, Minh … [Read more...]
Vietnam Air backed to train pilots for Boeing 787 Dreamliners
Vietnam Air backed to train pilots for Boeing 787 Dreamliners The Saigon Times Daily HCMC – Boeing Flight Services has struck a deal to train Vietnam Airlines pilots to operate Boeing 787 aircraft for which the national flag carrier has placed firm orders with U.S. plane manufacturer Boeing. Vietnam Airlines was quoted by Vietnam News Agency as saying that its pilots would be trained at a Boeing facility in Singapore and the airline would have some 90 pilots trained to fly the Boeing 787 Dreamliner this year. The airline has sent its first group of pilots to Boeing’s training program in preparation for taking delivery of its first Boeing 787 later this month. The carrier plans to put into service this modern airplane on the Hanoi-HCMC route before using it for the flights linking London and Vietnam’s two biggest cities, Hanoi and HCMC. Vietnam Airlines will become the first airline in Southeast Asia to use the Boeing 787 for flights from this region to Europe. … [Read more...]
Vietnam Airlines to hoose strategic investor as IPO moves ahead
Vietnam Airlines Corp., the national carrier, plans to select a strategic investor as early as the fourth quarter as it prepares for an initial public offering next year. The national carrier considers the equitization as a "key mission" in 2013 and is moving the process "as fast as possible," it said in an e-emailed statement yesterday in response to Bloomberg questions. A corporate evaluation report is expected to be completed this month to submit to authorities for approval, the Hanoi-based airline said in the statement. The plan has been revived as VietJet Aviation Joint Stock Co., the country's only privately owned carrier, said last week it's considering an IPO to fund expansion. The government has been trying to conduct an IPO of state-owned Vietnam Airlines since at least 2010 amid intensifying domestic competition. The company expects to hold the share sale in the second half of next year, after a planned offering in 2012 was delayed twice. "It makes sense for them to move … [Read more...]
Vietnam Airlines to add 1,200 flights for Tet holiday
The national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines, plans to add 1,200 flights from January 28, 2015 to March 18, 2015 to meet the increased demand for air travel and reduce airport overload during Tet holiday. Image for illustration The carrier plans to conduct 18,900 flights in the weeks around Tet, an increase of 12% from the normal schedule. The additional flights include 260 flights on the Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh City route, using bigger planes such as Airbus A321, A330 and Boeing 777; and nearly 340 flights on the Da Nang – Ho Chi Minh City route, with A321 aircraft. Extra flights will be also added on routes from Ho Chi Minh City to Vinh, Hai Phong, Pleiku, Buon Ma Thuot, Quy Nhon, Cam Ranh, Hue, Thanh Hoa and Phu Quoc; and from Hanoi to Cam Ranh, Da Nang, Phu Quoc and Vinh. The carrier will also operate 36 additional flights on the routes from both … [Read more...]
VietJet, VN Airlines test new Hanoi-HCM City route
VietNamNet Bridge – Low-cost carrier VietJet Air and the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines have joined forces to test a new flight path over parts of Laos and Cambodia that would greatly reduce flight time between Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport and Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat Airport. This flight path, dubbed “the Golden Route”, would see the two carriers flying over the south of Laos and the northwestern corner of Cambodia, and could shave approximately 30 minutes of flying time off connections between the two cities, thus potentially saving both airlines hundreds of millions in dollars in production costs on an annual basis. In accordance with the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV), both airlines ran a series of simulated flights from August 29 to September 3 to fully assess the route. VietJet and Vietnam Airlines will subsequently submit a report on the cost efficiency and other operational benefits after a strict evaluation is … [Read more...]
Vietnam Airlines, India’s Jet Airways offer more flight options
National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has entered a code-share partnership with India’s second largest airline Jet Airways, allowing them to offer more flight options to passengers travelling from India to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Under a code-share deal, Jet Airways will offer code share services from Bangkok and Singapore to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnam Airlines, meanwhile, will place its marketing code on Jet Airways’ flights between Bangkok and Mumbai/Delhi, and Singapore and Mumbai/Delhi/Chennai routes. Jet Airways operates one of the youngest fleets in the world, with flights to 75 destinations spanning the length and breadth of India and beyond./. … [Read more...]
Vietnam Airlines sets September IPO date
After seven years of delays, national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has announced its official public offering will be held in September, according to the Vietnam Investment Review. The information was released by Deputy Minister of Transportation Nguyen Hong Truong at a press conference held on April 2 in Hanoi. “If this go according to plan, Vietnam Airlines will implement its IPO this September,” Truong said. The equitisation of Vietnam Airlines would mark a new era for the state-owned carrier, which was initially planned for 2007. But because of difficulty selecting consultants and the economic crisis, the IPO is only now back on the table. The share issue, along with the possible sale of a strategic stake in the firm is still under discussion but both are aimed at increasing the carrier’s competitiveness in the increasingly crowded Asian marketplace. “If it goes forward, the IPO could raise capital for expansion. Perhaps even more significantly, it would … [Read more...]