Vietnam Airlines Announces Plans for 2005

3:26:28 PM | 7/8/2005

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines targets to serve 5.7 million passengers, transport nearly 100,000 tonnes of goods, and earn total revenues of VND19 trillion (US$1.21 billion) next year, the corporation announced on December 26, 2004 on the occasion of marking its total number of passengers of 5 million.

The airline plans to open new routes to Frankfurt in Germany and to Nagoya in Japan and launch the domestic flight between Hanoi and Dak Lak province’s Buon Ma Thuot City in 2005.

Vietnam Airlines general director Nguyen Xuan Hien told local reporters yesterday that his corporation would not increase fare on domestic routes next year and pledges to reduce the proportion of flight delay and cancel to around 10 per cent from 12 per cent in 2004.

The airline will also lease two more Boeing 777s and receive the fifth A-321 aircraft it purchased from Airbus group, raising its fleet to 40 aircraft, according to Hien. Vietnam Airlines has sent 80 pilots to France and Australia for training courses.

This year Vietnam Airlines is estimated to gain total revenues of VND17.39 trillion (over US$1.1 billion), exceeding the yearly target by 16 per cent and VND6 trillion (US$382 million) higher than last year's achieved figure.

It is also expected to conduct 46,000 safe flights in 2004, serve more than five million passengers, and pay VND404 billion (US$25.7 million) to the State budget. The transported passenger volume is estimated to rise by 25 per cent against 2003, in which international passenger will be 2.28 million, up 35.7 per cent on-year.