With Covid-19 largely under control, the operations of airlines in Vietnam began to recover in the first half of this year, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV).

An estimated 205,000 flights were conducted in the period. In June, the Vietnam Airlines Group, including Vietnam Airlines, Pacific Airlines, and VASCO, led the way with 13,719 flights, followed by VietJet Air with 12,008 flights, up more than eight-fold year-on-year. Bamboo Airways conducted 4,565 flights, while Vietravel Airlines’ flights increased 22-fold to 516. Passenger numbers totaled 43.4 million, up 65.5 per cent compared to May.

Although the market is seeing improvements, CAAV Director Dinh Viet Thang still expressed concern as the restoration of key international routes remains problematic. In addition to the efforts of every enterprise, the Administration has proposed that the Ministry of Transport (MoT) consider and suggest the government cut gasoline taxes to support operating costs so that carriers can be more flexible in ticket prices.

Similarly, Mr. Bui Doan Ne, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Aviation Business Association (VABA), offered solutions to support the aviation industry, such as speeding up investment in construction projects and infrastructure networks, negotiating with countries that are markets of potential in aviation that Vietnam is yet to fully exploit, and consider extending support policies on fees and charges for air transport providers until the international market recovers to pre-epidemic levels.