~ Le Viêt Nam, aujourd'hui. ~
The Vietnam News

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[Year 2002]

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.