Air transport in Vietnam is the commercial air transport of passengers, freight and mail within Vietnam and between Vietnam and the rest of the world. The government's Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam, the civil aviation authority under the Ministry of Transport, oversees the operations of aviation activities in the country.
Air transport in Vietnam started with the founding of the Vietnam Civil Aviation in January 1956 by the Vietnam People's Air Force (Ministry of Defense), upon the issuance of Decision No.666/TTG of the Vietnamese government. The authority was originally tasked with state management, national defense, and commercialization of air transportation. The aviation sector expanded greatly during its formative years, expanding from a few aircraft in what was then North Vietnam to eventually include a fleet of over 50 aircraft (including both Soviet- and US-made) in a unified Vietnam after 1976. Infrastructure was improved during this time, as airports country-wide were equipped with better facilities and materials for flight management and operations. CAAV grew to serve around 250,000 passengers a year, both domestically and on international routes to China, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand. [1]
On 9 December 2004, United Airlines made history when its Boeing 747-400 landed in Ho Chi Minh City. Flight UA869 took off from San Francisco at 12:10 pm, and made an en route stop at Hong Kong for two hours, before setting off again. The 747, which carried 260 passengers, touched down at 10:06 pm, [2] ending a 29-year absence of US commercial flights since the Fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. [3]
According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Vietnam is projected to be the third fastest-growing market for freight and international passengers behind the People's Republic of China and the United Arab Emirates, [4] at 10.2% annually until 2014. [5] Domestically, Vietnam will have the second fastest-growing passenger market behind China.
As of 2010 [update] , seven domestic and 47 foreign airlines operate within, to and from Vietnam. [6]
Vietnam Airlines is the country's national flag carrier. It operates approximately 70 aircraft, serving 46 destinations from its hubs at Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat International Airports. [7] The airline and its affiliate, VASCO, makes up 80% of the domestic aviation market. [8] Vietnam Airlines is a member of SkyTeam, an airline alliance, which it joined in June 2010. [9] Vietnam Airlines currently has plans to launch flights to Doha, Mumbai, Brisbane, and most importantly, the United States. [10] Although there has been a long-standing plan to launch flights to the US West Coast, it has been postponed due mainly to the stringent requirement that must be met, which the airline is currently working towards.
Pacific Airlines is the second largest domestic carrier behind Vietnam Airlines. Based in Ho Chi Minh City, the airline operates approximately 7 aircraft, with which it provides services to 7 destinations within Vietnam. It changed its name to Jetstar Pacific after Qantas of Australia bought 18% of shares, thereby integrating it into the Jetstar low-cost carrier network. [11] By 2010, Jetstar Pacific controlled 20% of the domestic market share. [8] After Qantas sold its 30% shareholding in July 2020, it resumed trading as Pacific Airlines.
VietJet Air is the first low-cost airlines in Vietnam. Launched at the end of 2009, Vietjet Air is now even larger than Jetstar Pacific Airlines. Vietjet Air operates flights to 17 airports in Vietnam and to 13 airports in other countries.
Established in 2011, Hai Au Aviation operates Cessna 208 Caravan seaplanes on scenic flights. [12]
There are 22 airports in operations throughout Vietnam, of which 9 are international. Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Noi Bai International Airport and Da Nang International Airport are the major gateways, handling most of international flights.
Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport is an international airport in Sydney, Australia, located 8 km (5 mi) south of the Sydney central business district, in the suburb of Mascot. The airport is owned by Sydney Airport Holdings. It is the primary airport serving Sydney and is a primary hub for Qantas, as well as a secondary hub for Virgin Australia and Jetstar, and a focus city for Air New Zealand. Situated next to Botany Bay, the airport has three runways.
Pacific Airlines Joint Stock Aviation Company is a low-cost airline headquartered in Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. With its operating base at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Ho Chi Minh City, it operates scheduled domestic and international services along with charter flights. From 2008 to 2020, it was known as Jetstar Pacific Airlines as part of Jetstar.
Vietnam Airlines is the flag carrier of Vietnam. The airline was founded in 1956 and later established as a state-owned enterprise in April 1989. Vietnam Airlines is headquartered in Long Biên district, Hanoi, with hubs at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi and Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City. The airline flies to 64 destinations in 17 countries, excluding codeshared services.
Jetstar Airways Pty Ltd, operating as Jetstar, is an Australian low-cost airline headquartered in Melbourne. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Qantas, created in response to the threat posed by airline Virgin Australia. Jetstar is part of Qantas' two brand strategy of having Qantas Airways for the premium full-service market and Jetstar for the low-cost market. Jetstar carries 8.5% of all passengers travelling in and out of Australia.
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Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport is the busiest airport in Vietnam with 32.5 million passengers in 2016 and 38.5 million passengers in 2018. It serves Ho Chi Minh City as well as the rest of southeastern Vietnam. As of April 2023, it had a total capacity of only 28 million passengers, which has caused constant congestion and sparked debate for expanding or building a new airport. The airport's IATA code, SGN, is derived from the city's former name of Saigon. In 2022, It was the 34th busiest airport in the world, and the second busiest in Southeast Asia.
Darwin International Airport is the busiest airport serving the Northern Territory and the tenth busiest airport in Australia. It is the only airport serving Darwin.
Active from 1951 to 1975, Air Viet Nam was South Vietnam's first commercial air carrier, headquartered in District 1, Saigon. Established under a decree by Chief of State Bảo Đại, the airline flew over two million passengers, throughout the Vietnam War, and until its collapse due to the Fall of Saigon.
Townsville Airport is a major Australian regional airport that services the city of Townsville, Queensland. The airport is also known as Townsville International Airport, and Garbutt Airport, a reference to its location in the Townsville suburb of Garbutt. Townsville Airport is serviced by major Australian domestic and regional airlines, and in 2011/12 handled 1.7 million passengers making it the 11th busiest airport in Australia.
Da Nang International Airport is the international airport serving the area of Central Vietnam, especially Da Nang, the largest city there. It is the third international airport in the country, besides Noi Bai International Airport (Hanoi) and Tan Son Nhat International Airport.
Nội Bài International Airport in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, is the second largest and busiest airport for passenger traffic, after Tan Son Nhat International Airport. It is currently the main airport serving Hanoi, replacing the role of Gia Lam Airport. The airport consists of two passenger terminals. Terminal 1 serves domestic flights, and the newly built Terminal 2 serves all international flights to and from Hanoi. The airport is currently the main hub of the flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, travel carrier Vietravel Airlines, and budget carriers Bamboo Airways, Pacific Airlines and Vietjet Air.
Cam Ranh International Airport is located on Cam Ranh Bay in Cam Ranh, a provincial city in Khánh Hòa province in Vietnam. It serves the city of Nha Trang, the capital of Khánh Hòa province, which is 30 km (16 NM) from the airport. This airport handled 9,747,172 passengers in 2019, making it the fourth busiest airport in Vietnam, after the ones in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Da Nang, and one of the fastest growing airports in the country.
Phu Bai International Airport is located just south of the central city of Huế, former capital of Vietnam.
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Dong Hoi Airport is an airport located in Loc Ninh commune, 6 km north of Đồng Hới city, capital of Quảng Bình Province, in North Central Coast of Vietnam, about 500 km South-east of Hanoi by road. The facilities cover 173 ha, on a sandy area, by the coast of South China Sea. The runway approaches near the seashore and nearly parallel to the Highway 1. The airport, like all civil airports in Vietnam, is owned and operated by Airports Corporation of Vietnam.
VietJet Aviation Joint Stock Company, trading as VietJet Air is a Vietnamese low-cost airline based in Hanoi. It was the first privately-owned new-age airline to be established in Vietnam, being granted its initial approval to operate by the Vietnamese Minister of Finance in November 2007. As of its launch in December 2011, it became the second private airline to offer domestic service in Vietnam, as well as the fifth airline overall to offer civil domestic flights. VietJet Air is owned by Sovico Holdings, HDBank, other organisational investors, and individual stakeholders.
The Vietnam Air Services Company, commonly recognized by its abbreviation VASCO, is an airline headquartered in Tân Bình, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. A fully owned subsidiary of Vietnam Airlines, it mainly operates regional scheduled flights on behalf of Vietnam Airlines. It also conducts charter flights, medical evacuations, SAR operations, oil platforms flights, and other aviation services.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam is the aviation authority under the Ministry of Transport of Vietnam. It handles and regulates civil aviation in Vietnam. Among its functions are: the formulation of plans and programs to develop civil aviation; the development of legal drafts, regulations and standards relating to civil aviation; information dissemination and education on aviation law; aviation safety and security; airport, aircraft and flight management; environmental protection; search and rescue and flood prevention; ratifying air fares proposed by airlines operating in Vietnam; research and development; handling complaints and/or violations of aviation law; administrative reform; and financial and personnel affairs.
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