Chartered flights to central Vietnam on the rise

Chartered flights to central Vietnam on the rise

Chartered flights to central Vietnam on the rise

By Mong Binh – The Saigon Times Daily

HCMC – The number of chartered flights to central Vietnam is jumping between now and the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday compared to a year ago, according to the Danang-based tour operator Vitours and the aviation authority.

Vitours director Cao Tri Dung estimated local and foreign airlines had 12 to 15 charter flights from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and elsewhere in Asia to Danang International Airport alone in the period, with more than half of them catered to by Vitours.

Dung told the Daily on the phone on Monday that the number of chartered flights to the region in the period would triple or quadruple that in the year-ago period. This substantial increase is attributable to the fact that more foreign travel agencies are choosing central Vietnam as a new destination for their guests, coupled with a recovery of global travel demand.

“They (foreign travel agencies) charter flights for their customers to Phuket and Bali in previous years and now is the time for them to visit central Vietnam,” Dung said. He added this region was able to meet requirements for accommodation and entertainment, as it was now home to many luxury properties and UNESCO-listed heritage sites, including the former imperial capital of Hue and the Phong Nha-Ke Bang Caves in Quang Binh Province.

Dung said over half of the chartered flights to central Vietnam were operated by Vietnam Airlines from such markets as Korea, Hong Kong and Japan, and the rest by TransAsia Airways of Taiwan and other foreign carriers.

The Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV) said Shanghai Airlines had suspended services to Danang International Airport, but this did not result in a reduction in frequencies of chartered flights to one of the four international airports in central Vietnam. The others in the region are Phu Bai, Cam Ranh and Chu Lai airports.

CAAV demonstrated that Russia’s Vladivostok Air had kicked off their chartered flights from Vladivostok and Khabarovsk to Cam Ranh International Airport in Khanh Hoa Province.

About one month ago, Vietnam Airlines started a series of more than 40 flights chartered by the international travel firm Vietlink from Hong Kong and Danang until early May next year, using the 184-seat Airbus A321 aircraft.

Dung of Vitours said over the past years, Vietnam Airlines and other carriers had operated their medium-sized aircraft with 160 to 180 seats for the chartered flights to and from Danang with an average load factor of 70%.

Dung said the visitors using chartered flights often stayed four to five days exploring services and destinations in central Vietnam, and spent much money on services and products there.

Attracting visitors to central Vietnam on chartered flights promises a bright future because the number of scheduled flights to the region remains limited. Singapore’s SilkAir now has four weekly flights to Danang while Vietnam Airlines has launched its daily HCMC-Tokyo service with a stopover in the central city.

Dung said Vitours had invested US$40,000-50,000 this year on promotion and support programs in order to bring more chartered flights to Danang, or double the amount the company spent last year.

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