3:26:39 PM | 7/8/2005
The Ministry of Transport has proposed to the Government to establish more airlines besides the existing Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines, both State-owned, that currently have a monopoly on the 82 million population country, said Deputy Minister and Head of Vietnam Aviation Administration (VAA) Nguyen Tien Sam.
At present, about 5-6 projects to set up private airlines were sent to VAA, of which, the newest is a project to establish Saigon Air, he revealed.
All organizations and individuals will be entitled to take part in the civil airline business if they meet conditions of finance, technology and human resource, he said.
Besides common regulations on establishing an enterprise and financial issues the management board’s good aviation knowledge and experiences are also required to ensure safe flights and a profitable business, Sam emphasized.
It is not easy to do business in the aviation sector. Almost all projects sent to VAA are said to be unfeasible. Only one project, that is Saigon Air, is considered the most feasible.
The Saigon Air project was submitted to CAA in January with a possible chartered capital of VND300 billion (US$19 million), which will be contributed by shareholders and mobilized from domestic and foreign loans.
“If our project is approved, we can mobilize enough capital within 6 months and can start flying within one year,” said Doan Van Quang, Head of the Lobbying Board for Saigon Air Establishment.
“If approved, Saigon Air will conduct international and domestic flights. During the project’s first period, the carrier is likely to focus on goods transport activities and charter flights”, he said.
He also said that all members of the board were experienced people, who had many years of contribution in the aviation sector. They held important positions in the sector such as officials of
However, according to CAA, the projects have not received approval over the past six months because the mobilizing board has not proven their financial capacity.
Quang explained that the carrier’s shareholders haven’t contributed money because they are not sure if the project has been approved or not.
The air business is very challenging but it is very possible to make a profit, said Le Van Trung, a former member of the lobbying board.
Pacific Airlines, the first joint stock airline in
Thus, a fair-playing environment in the air industry should be created to encourage competition among carriers, thus improving the quality of service, he said.
A sum of US$5 million, a three-aircraft fleet, a 12-member hostess staff and experienced managers can operate an airline, he added.
Besides, one of the requirements for becoming a member of Would Trade Organization (WTO) is the national air business cannot be monopolized.
At present, Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines are operating six Boeing 777s, four Boeing 767s, two Boeing 737s; 19 Airbus A310s, A320s, and A321s; nine ATR 72s and two Fokker 70s.
The country accommodates 15 domestic and 23 international air routes, with 22 air carriers from 19 countries flying to
The national flag carrier served more than five million passengers and handled 88,589 tons of freight, on more than 46,000 flights in 2004, up 25 per cent and 14 per cent, respectively against 2003 and earned VND12,332 billion (US$785 million) from air transport.
In 2005, Vietnam Airlines hopes to serve 5.71 million passengers and 94,842 tons of cargo, up 13.6 per cent and 7.1 per cent, respectively, against last year.
It will strive to become a powerful economic group by 2010 with the main purpose of developing air transport, and hopes to serve 12 million passengers and transport 205,000 tons of cargo.
VNS, Vnexpress.net
Vietnamese
