Tan Son Nhat airport adds more night flights during Tet

HCM City (VNA) – The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) on February 3 said that it will add more flights at night at Tan Son Nhat International Airport to respond to the spike in travel demand during the Lunar New Year holiday season, which falls in mid-February.

From now to the end of February, the airport will serve 36 flights per hour instead of 32 ones per hour during the period from 00:00 am to 5:59 am.

The CAAV also asked the Vietnam Air Traffic Management Corporation and Airports Corporation of Vietnam to adjust operation schedules at Tho Xuan, Phu Cat, Chu Lai, Pleiku, Dong Hoi and Tuy Hoa Airports, while making meticulous preparation to ensure optimal service quality for late-night flights.

Earlier, domestic airlines said they will increase the number of night flights before, during and after the Tet holiday.

According to Nguyen Quang Trung, head of Vietnam Airlines’ development planning department, the national flag carrier is adding late night flights during peak time, with the number of flights surging 30 percent as compared to the same time las year.

The move aims to meet growing air travel demand and ease ground congestion at airports, he added.

Tet airfares are 10 percent lower than the previous year, and a wide range of flexible fares have been available for customers, Trung said.

Vietnam Airlines Group, which includes Vietnam Airlines, budget carrier Jetstar Pacific and Vietnam Air Services Company (VASCO), said it will supply over 414,000 extra seats from January 27 to February 26, 2021 to serve increasing travel demand. This will bring the total seats on flights operated by the Vietnam Airlines Group during the traditional holiday to 2.4 million, equivalent to nearly 12,000 flights.

Vietnam Airlines has increased night flights from 0:00 to 5:30 everyday, with airfares sold at 200,000-300,000 VND (8.69-13.04 USD) cheaper than those for day flights.

Meanwhile, low-cost carrier Vietjet Air decided to add more flights departing late at 23:30 and early at 5:30, as well as provide 1.5 million Tet tickets on all domestic routes. Besides, it has recently opened sales for 1.5 million promotional airfares (from 555,000 VND including taxes and fees).

Bamboo Airways said it recently launched direct flights from Can Tho to Phu Quoc island, and Con Dao island in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province. The non-stop service will be operated during the week, using Embraer 195 aircraft. On the occasion, the airline offers special fares on the route, with one-way ticket priced from 49,000 VND on Can Tho-Phu Quoc, and 809,000 VND on Can Tho-Con Dao./.