The 30^th anniversary of Vietnam Airlines’ first direct flight to South Korea celebrated

Some 15 million passengers have been served on the air route since.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended a ceremony in Seoul on July 3, marking 30 years since Vietnam Airlines launched its first direct flight between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea (RoK) and welcoming the 15 millionth passenger on this route, within the framework of his 4-day official visit to South Korea, starting from June 30, according to a report from the Vietnam News Agency (VNA).

The first direct air route, linking Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City to the RoK's Seoul capital city, served as an important bridge promoting socio-economic and cultural exchanges between the two countries, the news agency remarked.

At present, the national flag carrier is operating six direct flights: Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh City - Seoul; Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh City - Busan; Da Nang - Seoul; and Cam Ranh - Seoul, with an average frequency of up to 112 flights per week, according to the State-run news agency.

Vietnam Airlines is also the first and only airline in Vietnam operating modern wide-body aircraft Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 on the routes between Vietnam and the RoK. Over the past three decades, it has conducted a total of 65,000 flights, transporting 15 million passengers and more than 291,000 tons of goods between the two countries, VNA reported.

The news agency quoted PM Chinh as addressing the event that currently, the RoK holds the No. 1 position in direct investment, No. 2 in development cooperation and tourism, and No. 3 in labor and trade cooperation with Vietnam.

There are nearly 300,000 Vietnamese people working, studying and living in the RoK, and around 200,000 Koreans working and living in the Southeast Asian country, the PM said.

He requested the aviation sector in general and Vietnam Airlines in particular to seek ways to improve service quality and reduce ticket prices, given the fact that increasing travel demand is resulting in a rise in competitiveness.

At the ceremony, Vietnam Airlines and the Korean national flag carrier Korean Air signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in improving aviation services in the two countries, VNA reported.