Vietnam Airlines to sell e-tickets this june
HA NOI — Viet Nam Airlines will officially sell e-tickets for its flights from June 1 this year under its commitment to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
The airline currently offers e-tickets on a trial basis via a large number of its registered sales agents. Passengers can book tickets by calling Viet Nam Airlines directly or through its booking offices and other authorised agencies.
Once the move to e-ticket sales is fully completed, the carrier will move on to a trial e-payment service.
A representative from the carrier’s northern office said, as of last December, all of its agents in the northern region have started selling e-tickets for local flights.
To book e-tickets, passengers must provide an ID card or passport and a contact telephone number in case the flight schedule is changed.
All foreign passengers must present their passports at Viet Nam Airlines booking offices or authorised agencies when making reservations and purchasing e-tickets. They must also report their passport expiry date to the airline.
Vietnam News Agency - February 15, 2008.
Philippine budget airline enters Vietnam market
Philippine budget air carrier, Cebu Pacific, will open its routes to Vietnam as from April 10, according to the Vietnam Civil Aviation Administration.
The airline will have four flights per week on a route linking Manila with Ho Chi Minh City and three flights per week on another route connecting Manila and Hanoi.
The Cebu Pacific will use Airbus 319, 320, 321 planes, which have less than 200 seats, for the routes.
So far, several low-cost foreign air carriers have entered the Vietnamese market, including Thai AirAsia that has three flights per day on its Hanoi-Bangkok route and two flights per day on its Hanoi-Kuala Lumpur. Thai AirAsia is preparing to launch another route from Kuala Lumpur to Ho Chi Minh City .
Another Thai budget air carrier, Nok Air, also has two flights a day on the Hanoi-Bangkok route on two 190-seat B737-800 planes as from November 2007.
Singapore's Tiger Airways was the first airline to offer low-cost flights to Vietnam.
Vietnam News Agency - February 15, 2008.
Viet Nam opens up aviation market
The kick-start of VietJet, the first private airline in Viet Nam , is considered the most obvious move so far by the Vietnamese government in opening up the aviation market.
The policy to allow businesses from all economic sectors to provide air transport services has been in place for a long time, as stipulated in the Viet Nam Civil Aviation Law, promulgated in 1991. The revised Civil Aviation Law, which came to effect in 2007, has provided more detailed regulations on the matter.
According to Minister of Transport and Communication Ho Nghia Dung, the establishment of new aviation firms is necessary to create a highly-competitive aviation market in the context of rising demand for air transport.
The government has agreed in principle to the establishment of the 2 nd private aviation company in Viet Nam , Phu Quoc Air, Dung noted.
Some State and joint stock companies are also eying investment in air transport services. However, the Viet Nam Aviation Department suggested that the government permits only two or three more aviation companies until 2010 as this field has high requirements for capital, safety and security.
VietJet plans to fly on domestic routes linking Ho Chi Minh City , Ha Noi and Da Nang and international air routes from Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City to Singapore and Thailand at competitive prices.
“We will establish a partnership for mutual development with the aviation community in the Vietnamese market in order to ensure customers’ highest benefit,” said Robert Hughes, managing director of VietJet.
Facing great challenges of a newly-established company, VietJet will hire foreign experts for management work and train its personnel home and abroad with the aim of applying high technical standards right at its start at a reasonable cost.
VietJet leaders openly talked about their ambition to win over market shares from its two senior rivals, Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines, when VietJet is officially put into operation in November.
However, Vietnam Airlines General Director Pham Ngoc Minh said there is plenty of room in the market for other airlines, and Vietnam Airlines’ aims is to take the lead to ensure a healthy competition in air service supply.
Even though both Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines do not show concern about the establishment of VietJet, there are already signs of a underground wave of competition among aviation firms. In the latest move, Vietnam Airlines has signed a contract to purchase 30 airplanes from the Airbus group in preparations for its plan to open more air routes to raise its competitive edge.
Besides five local airlines, 43 foreign airlines are operating flights to Viet Nam . Over the past five years, the aviation sector recorded an annual growth rate of 15 percent, especially a growth rate of 20 percent in 2007.
Domestic airline companies themselves said the establishment of more airlines will create a breakthrough in the Viet Nam aviation sector’s transport capacity and competitive edge.
The aviation sector has worked out a development strategy until 2020, which estimates that 15 billion USD will be needed to develop the national fleet, airports and increase air control capacity. Under the strategy, country will have a total of 26 airports, including 10 international airports, to be located in all three regions.
To meet the urgent need for human resources, Vietnam Airlines is negotiating with World Airlines Services for their help in pilot training.
The Vietnam Economic Times - February 12, 2008.
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