The aviation authorities of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia agreed to launch a straight air route from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi over Lao and Cambodian airspace from June 2015 onwards, according to Head of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) Lai Xuan Thanh.
At first, the route will be operated on flights from HCM City to Hanoi at the optimum altitude of FL350, (35,000 feet), Thanh said, explaining that the route from Hanoi to HCM City still required further research.
The CAAV will work with the International Civil Aviation Organisation on the opening of the new air route and complete all the required steps, he added.
Earlier, a delegation from the Ministry of Transport negotiated the optimum altitude with Laos, since the country was concerned the new air route could interfere with existing national routes and complicate flight operations.
In late August, the Vietnamese ministry called upon the Government to look into the creation of a straight air route linking Hanoi and HCM City via Laos and Cambodia.
On September 3-4, flight simulator (SIM) tests were run by the CAAV in cooperation with Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air on a potential flight route from Hanoi’s Noi Bai Airport to Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City via the two countries’ airspace.
Trial results showed the proposed route is 85.2km shorter, saving five minutes of flying time and 190kg of fuel. The total length of the new route was 1,191km, with a flying time of 103 minutes and fuel consumption of 4,140kg.
Transport Minister Dinh La Thang has been pushing for the prompt launch of the new route, expecting it to shorten flights between Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat airports, and save fuel.
In March 2009, the CAAV received a proposal for the Hanoi-HCM City straight air route from former pilot Mai Trong Tuan.
The proposed air route would mean flights between the capital and the southern economic hub traverse Lao and Cambodian airspace, rather than the ocean, no longer following Vietnam's "S" shaped coastline.-VNA
At first, the route will be operated on flights from HCM City to Hanoi at the optimum altitude of FL350, (35,000 feet), Thanh said, explaining that the route from Hanoi to HCM City still required further research.
The CAAV will work with the International Civil Aviation Organisation on the opening of the new air route and complete all the required steps, he added.
Earlier, a delegation from the Ministry of Transport negotiated the optimum altitude with Laos, since the country was concerned the new air route could interfere with existing national routes and complicate flight operations.
In late August, the Vietnamese ministry called upon the Government to look into the creation of a straight air route linking Hanoi and HCM City via Laos and Cambodia.
On September 3-4, flight simulator (SIM) tests were run by the CAAV in cooperation with Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air on a potential flight route from Hanoi’s Noi Bai Airport to Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City via the two countries’ airspace.
Trial results showed the proposed route is 85.2km shorter, saving five minutes of flying time and 190kg of fuel. The total length of the new route was 1,191km, with a flying time of 103 minutes and fuel consumption of 4,140kg.
Transport Minister Dinh La Thang has been pushing for the prompt launch of the new route, expecting it to shorten flights between Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat airports, and save fuel.
In March 2009, the CAAV received a proposal for the Hanoi-HCM City straight air route from former pilot Mai Trong Tuan.
The proposed air route would mean flights between the capital and the southern economic hub traverse Lao and Cambodian airspace, rather than the ocean, no longer following Vietnam's "S" shaped coastline.-VNA
