Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has allowed Vietnam Airlines (VNA) to immediately make a plan to purchase or hire an additional 10 new Boeing 787s, either the 787-9 or 787-10 models, considering the possibility of buying equivalent planes such as A350, state media reports.
The move is to carry out the plan to open direct flights to the US and deal with a shortage of airplanes, meeting the current and future demand.
At present, the national flag carrier is lacking planes for both domestic and international air routes.
The PM has also agreed to purchase five more ATR72 aircrafts for passenger transportation on domestic air routes, instructing VNA to continue implementing the project to buy 10 Airbus 321s and four Boeing 787s for which the contracts were signed in 2004.
The government leader also asked to shortly start direct flights to the US. He agreed to the plan to open the route in late 2007 but instructed functional bodies to actively seek measures to be able to launch the direct flights to the US in late 2006.
He said in the short term the corporation must build a project to use aircrafts for the flights to the US, including the use of the current number of Boeing 777s and the possibility of hiring more Boeing 777s-200ER for the period of 2012-2020.
At present, the airline operates Boeing 777s and 767s and Airbus A320 and A321 planes.
The carrier hopes to transform itself into a regional carrier and Vietnam into a regional hub by 2020. It plans to spend $3 billion to boost its fleet from the current 39 aircraft to 100 aircraft by 2020, which is roughly the size of most major Asian airlines.
Currently, Vietnam Airlines is under investigation in Vietnam on allegations of executive travel overspending, expensive engine lease contracts, and unsuitable engine choices on some of its aircraft. Labour, Capital Security
Vietnamese
