Airbus sees demand for A380 in Vietnam as early as 2012-2013
HANOI — A senior Airbus executive said Sunday that he could see Vietnam Airlines using the new A380 as early as 2012-2013 as the world's biggest passenger plane arrived in Hanoi on a promotional tour.
Edouard Ullmo, Airbus executive vice-president for Asia-Pacific, said Vietnam Airlines was expanding so rapidly it could be ready to operate a plane the size of the A380 by 2012-13.
"The economic development of the country is extremely impressive today... We believe that in a not so distant future there will be a need for longer wide body aircraft, there will be need for A380 maybe in the future," said Ullmo.
The Vietnamese national carrier already has a fleet of 45 planes, but executive vice president Nguyen Van Hung said that by 2020 the airline would need between 70 and 80.
The number of foreign visitors to Vietnam increased by nearly 15 percent in the first half of this year and the airline is planning to expand, launching its first direct flights to the United States at the end of 2008.
The A380 arrived in Hanoi from Bangkok, where it sustained slight damage to its wing when it crashed into a hangar. The Vietnam demonstration went off without incident.
The giant plane is Monday due to fly over Hong Kong, where a major air show will be in full swing, before heading on to Seoul on Wednesday on the final stage of its Asian tour.
Airbus now has 173 of the new planes on order from 14 clients. The first delivery, to Singapore Airlines, is due on October 15, and the first commercial flight, between Singapore and Sydney, is scheduled for October 15.
Agence France Presse - September 2, 2007
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