Vietnam

On 19 Dec, Aero K Airlines inaugurated a daily round-trip route between Incheon and Hanoi, with a flight time of just over 4 hours

Noi Bai International Airport served more than 30 million passengers and 180,000 flights in 2024. International passenger numbers were +23% YoY. The airport handles 500 flights and over 80,000 passengers daily, including nearly 40,000 international travellers

According to air travel data provider OAG, the Hanoi-HCMC route ranks 4th among the world’s busiest domestic routes in 2024, with 10.6 million seats from Oct 2023-Sep 2024, -2% YoY. The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) reported that the route represents over 22% of domestic passenger traffic, with 1 in 5 passengers travelling on this route

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV): - Overall on-time performance (OTP) for Vietnamese airlines dropped to 68% in Nov 2024, down from 84.2% in Nov 2023 - Bamboo Airways led in Nov 2024 with an OTP of 86.8%, followed by VASCO (83.4%), Pacific Airlines (82.4%), Vietravel Airlines (73.9%), Vietnam Airlines (72%), Vietjet Air (59.2%) - In Nov 2024, the industry’s cancellation rate averaged 0.5%, Vietravel Airlines led with 2.3% while Bamboo Airways had the lowest rate of 0.2%

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV), Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air have the highest rates of slot misuse at HCMC’s Tan Son Nhat and Hanoi’s Noi Bai airports. In Oct 2024: - Vietnam Airlines misused 441 slots, and left 173 slots unused at Tan Son Nhat airport, while it misused 264 slots and left 142 unused at Noi Bai airport - Vietjet misused 855 slots, and left 182 slots unused at Tan Son Nhat airport, while it misused 567 slots and left 128 unused at Noi Bai airport Mismanagement rates for smaller airlines at Tan Son Nhat were much lower, with Bamboo Airways, Vietravel Airlines, Jetstar Pacific Airlines having 58, 38, and 8 misused slots respectively. The main cause of slot mismanagement is flight delays, leading airlines to miss their assigned times

By the end of Nov 2024, Phu Quoc hosted over 4,000 international flights, +175% YoY

Vietnam Airlines received 3 new aircraft, including a Boeing 787-10 and 2 Airbus A320neos, increasing its fleet to 103 by the end of 2024. The new planes will help to provide over 100,000 seats for the Tet holiday peak. Additional flights will focus on routes between Hanoi and HCMC, Nha Trang, Da Nang, Phu Quoc, Vinh, and others

Vietjet received an A321neo ACF - its 111th aircraft at Tan Son Nhat International Airport after arriving from the Airbus factory in Hamburg, Germany. The aircraft reduces fuel consumption and emissions by up to 20% and cuts noise pollution by 50%. Vietjet plans to receive 3 more aircraft in Dec 2024 and lease 6-10 short-term wet-leased planes during the Tet holiday season to increase travel capacity

he Ministry of Transport has announced new policies to support airlines from 1 Jan 2025 for 36 months, including: Airlines providing services for international flights with invoices from: $125,000-$250,000 USD will see a 1.5% reduction $250,000-$750,000 USD will see a 2.5% reduction $750,000-$1.5 million USD will see a 3.5% reduction Above $1.5 million USD will see a 5% reduction Airlines providing services for domestic flights with invoices from: 5 billion VND-10 billion VND will see a 1.5% reduction 10 billion VND-15 billion VND will see a 2.5% reduction 15 billion VND-20 billion VND will see a 3.5% reduction Above 30 billion VND will see a 5% reduction Vietnamese airlines participating in the air transport market for the first time will see a 50% discount on aircraft take off and landing services and flight operations services Certain new regular international flight services at Noi Bai, Tan Son Nhat and Danang will see 90% off the cost of aircraft take off and landing services for 12 months At other airports, the cost will be 50% discount on the cost of aircraft take off and landing services for 12 months

Vietnam Airlines Corporation and the Lang Son Provincial People's Committee signed a comprehensive cooperation agreement for 2025–2030. According to the agreement, Vietnam Airlines and Lang Son province will collaborate to boost tourism and trade by organising events focused on education, culture, cuisine, and regional tourism. Vietnam Airlines will use its extensive flight network and 5-star services to develop unique travel routes and tourism products. Both parties will also promote each other's destinations, products, and services through media channels

AirAsia announced 5 new routes to Vietnam, including: - HCMC - Phnom Penh route, launched on 22 Dec, 2024 - Hanoi - Phnom Penh route, starting 24 Jan, 2025 - Phu Quoc - Bangkok route, resumed on 27 Oct, 2024 - Da Lat - Kuala Lumpur route, resumed on 1 Nov, 2024 - HCMC - Kota Kinabalu route, launched on 3 Dec, 2024 - The new routes increase AirAsia's operations to 195 weekly flights to and from Vietnam, offering over 1.7 million seats annually

According to the Director of Da Nang International Airport, the airport will be the first in Vietnam to pilot a fee-based priority lane service at security screening, starting 1 Jan 2025. The priority lane will be available at the T1 domestic terminal, with a service fee set at $4 USD per passenger. Eligible passengers include those with premium tickets, and frequent flyer members holding premium-tier cards. The lane will reduce wait times and alleviate congestion during peak hours

According to the revised master plan for Dong Hoi Airport in Quang Binh province, the air traffic control tower will be relocated to the southeast of the passenger terminal, covering around 7,600 sqm. New facilities, including a power station, technical building, and water supply station, will be constructed near the passenger terminal. A general aviation area will be built in the northwest section of the terminal

Lawmakers approved an increase in Vietnam Airlines' charter capital by up to $868 million USD through selling new shares to existing shareholders. The National Assembly also granted Pacific Airlines a waiver on penalties for late payments and tax arrears until the end of 2024

The National Assembly has approved the amended plan for Long Thanh International Airport’s completion deadline to be extended to 2026 year-end, as well as adding a second runway for the first phase

The Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) estimates that the number of pax through airports during 2025 Tet will reach 10.5 million, an increase from 10 million in 2024. HCMC is predicted to handle 4 million pax during the holiday

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) on the domestic flight routes for the 2025 Lunar New Year holiday: - On 25 Jan 2025, the booking rate of flights from HCMC - Hue reached 99.31%, HCMC - Pleiku reached 100%, HCMC - Tuy Hoa reached 100.24%, and HCMC - Quang Binh reached 100% - On 25 Jan 2025, return flights have low booking rates at below 20% - By the holiday’s end on 2 Feb 2025, booking rates for flights from Pleiku to HCMC reached 100%, while that of the Thanh Hoa - HCMC route is 99.56%

On 25 Nov, the National Assembly discussed Vietnam Airlines' restructuring plan to address challenges from the pandemic, aiming to boost competitiveness and achieve sustainable recovery and development by 2035. The airline’s consolidated equity remains negative at 11,086 billion VND as of 30 Sep 2024, down from negative 17,025 billion VND earlier in 2024. According to the restructuring plan, Vietnam Airlines proposed issuing additional shares to existing shareholders to raise up to 22,000 billion VND in charter capital. However, implementation faces regulatory challenges under the Securities Law and the Law on Management and Use of State Capital