11:35:52 AM | 23/10/2007
Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung approved Vietnam Airlines’ fleet expansion plan to buy 43 aircraft to increase its fleet to 107 by 2020, the government website reported on October 22.
The airlines will increase its fleet to 60 aircrafts in 2010, 85 in 2015 and 107 in 2020. The number of aircraft will be adjusted in accordance with the local aviation market.
Between 2006 and 2020, Vietnam Airlines plans to buy 20 150-seat A321s, eight 280-seat B787-8s, five 70-seat ATRs and ten 300-seat A350-900.
The PM instructed Vietnam Airlines to negotiate directly with Boeing Co. on purchase of 12 B787-8s and with Airbus on purchase of ten A350s and 20 A321 to complete signing contracts before November 16 and December 21of 2007.
Dung also agreed to allocate VND904 billion ($56 million) for the purchase of four B787-8s that Vietnam Airlines signed with Boeing in 2005. The aircrafts will be delivered in 2009 and 2010.
PM Dung commissioned the Ministry of Finance to privatize Vietnam Airlines and to act as guarantee for the state-owned airlines and Vietnam Aircraft Leasing Company in buying aircrafts.
Early October this year, Vietnam Airlines signed a memorandum of understanding for the purchase of 12 Boeing 787-8s costing $1.9 billion based on catalogue prices and of ten A350s costing $3.8 billion during PM’s visits to New York and Paris, respectively. (
www.chinhphu.vn)
Vietnamese
