The Southeast Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SeABank) has provided a 61-million USD loan for Vietnam Airlines to purchase Airbus A321-200 aircraft.

This is the first time the national flag carrier has teamed up with SeABank to purchase the aircraft. SeABank is also the first local bank to finance the deal.

Le Thu Thuy, Vice Chairwoman of the SeABank Board of Directors, said the bank’s credit loan will help Vietnam Airlines fulfil its fleet expansion plan to enhance operational efficiency on domestic and international air routes and become one of the big airlines in the world.

Vietnam Airlines General Director Pham Ngoc Minh said the renovation of the fleet through the purchase of the world’s leading aircraft will help the airline meet the travel demand of passengers, increase flight frequency and maintain service quality.

The craft arrived at Hanoi’s international airport on September 15 and is ready to be put in use.

This is the 50th A321 in Vietnam Airlines’ A321 fleet and the 22nd in the airline’s plan of purchasing 26 new ones from the manufacturer Airbus during the 2011-15 period.-VNA