VietJetAir expands fleet to meet rising demand
The Saigon
Times Daily quoted VietJetAir as saying earlier this week that the first
Airbus A320 it just received in 2014 would enable it to provide over
10,000 more seats per week to meet the surging demand for travel during
the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, better known as Tet in Vietnam, and
to expand its fleet to 11.
Desmond Lin, business development
director of VietJetAir, said with more aircraft, the airline would
better serve its customers, particularly during Tet - the biggest
holiday in Vietnam that falls on January 31 this year.
“Customers
now have more options to schedule for returning homes or traveling with
their beloved people during the holiday. The increase in the fleet is
also among our attempts to expand our operations this year,” Lin said.
VietJetAir performs almost 600 weekly flights on 16 domestic and
international routes, including those connecting Ho Chi Minh City and
Hanoi with Thailand's Bangkok. It plans new routes linking tourist and
business hubs in Asia such as the Republic of Korea, Japan, Taiwan and
Singapore in the next few months.
VietJetAir struck deals in
September last year to purchase and lease up to 100 Airbus A320 family
aircraft from Airbus and partners. Under these deals, the airline will
buy 92 new A320 aircraft and lease eight more from third-party lessors,
at a total estimated cost of 9.1 billion USD.-VNA