Vietnam Airlines has record year
HANOI - Vietnam Airlines said it carried five million passengers in 2004, a record for the state-controlled flag carrier.
The airline said it carried more than 2.2 million foreign passengers, an increase of 600,000, while domestic passengers increased 25 percent and cargo rose 14 percent to 88,500 tons.
Vietnam Airlines said revenues rose 16 percent to 1.1 billion dollars.
Passenger numbers are forecast to grow 13.6 percent in 2005 to a total of 5.7 million, it said.
Vietnam Airlines General Director Nguyen Xuan Hien was quoted by the Vietnam News Agency on Sunday as saying the company would introduce "a more flexible" fares policy in 2005.
Vietnam's state-owned carrier has announced plans to double its fleet by 2010 in a bid to establish itself as a major regional player.
By the end of 2005, the company will operate 40 aircraft -- eight Boeing 777, four 767, ten Airbus A320, seven A321, nine ATR 72s and two Fokker 70s.
The fleet could reach 75 aircraft by 2010.
The International Air Transport Association has said Vietnam's air travel industry will grow 10.5 percent per year for the next 10 years.
Agence france Presse - December 27, 2004.
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