Vietnam Airlines to launch direct Hanoi-Tokyo flights
HANOI - Vietnam Airlines said on Monday it would launch direct flights between Hanoi and
Tokyo on June 29 under a code-sharing arrangement with Japan Airlines to meet growing demand from
Japanese tourists.
An official of Vietnam's state-run flag carrier told Reuters the airlines would operate four flights weekly between
the capitals using Boeing aircraft.
Currently, Vietnam Airlines passengers heading for Tokyo
from Hanoi have to transit in Hong Kong or Singapore.
The official said Vietnam Airlines would fly the route on
Tuesdays and Saturdays and Japan Airlines on Mondays and
Fridays.
She said the Vietnam Airlines flights would leave Hanoi for
Tokyo's Narita airport 8 a.m. (0100 GMT) allowing easy
connections with code-share flights to the U.S. west coast.
The Japan Airlines flights will depart Hanoi at 11.50 p.m
(1650 GMT).
Vietnam Airlines already flies five times a week to Tokyo
from Ho Chi Minh City, the country's main business centre
and a popular tourism destination.
The past year has seen a surge in Japanese tourists visiting Vietnam. In the first five months of this year nearly
96,000 Japanese visited Vietnam, up more than 40 percent on the same period last year.
The airline official attributed the increase to Vietnam's image as a safe destination after the September 11 attacks
on the United States.
Reuters - June 17, 2002.
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