National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines and American Airlines, the world’s largest carrier, will from April 17 start the implementation of a code-share agreement which was signed between the two carriers in November 2005.
Accordingly, in the first phase, starting April 17, Vietnam Airlines will place its “VN” designator code on American Airlines flights to Tokyo, Osaka, Paris and Frankfurt from the US, with the services continuing on to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City by Vietnam Airlines.
Vietnam Airlines has also been granted flight code access to seven routes within the US, departing from Dallas (Fort Worth).
In the second phase, American Airlines will place its “AA” designator code on Vietnam Airlines’ services from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Tokyo, Osaka, Paris, and Frankfurt.
The starting date for the second phase is subject to approval by aviation authorities in both countries.
General director of Vietnam Airlines, Nguyen Xuan Hien, said “the implementation of code-share contracts with American Airlines allows Vietnam Airlines to provide more products to the business communities in both countries, particularly overseas Vietnamese in the US”.
He added air traffic between Vietnam and the US had increased significantly in recent years, due to fast growth in bilateral trade and investment.
Theo Panagiotoulias, managing director of American Airlines in the Asia-Pacific, says Vietnam is one of the top destinations for air travel in Asia, forecasting strong growth in travel between the US and Vietnam.
Code-sharing flights with American Airlines will bring the number of international destinations Vietnam Airlines reaches to 37, a significant rise from the current 26.
Vietnam Airlines is still fine-tuning plans for direct flights to the US - home to an estimated 1.2 million people of Vietnamese origin. Aviation authorities announced last week that Taiwan has approved Vietnamese carriers to use the territory as a transit point for flights to the US.
VIR, VNS
Vietnamese
