Hanoi - Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has given
the go-ahead to issue a license to the country's first private
airline, VietJetAir, Transportation Ministry officials confirmed
Friday.
'The prime minister has agreed in principle' to allow the company
to operate, and assigned the Transportation Ministry to prepare the
legal documents, senior ministry official Nguyen Van Cong said.
Domestic flights are currently provided exclusively by the
government-owned flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, and its wholly-owned
subsidiary Pacific Airlines. Tour operators and travelers have long
complained about the absence of alternatives.
VietJetAir public relations' officer Robert Hugh said the company
expected to launch operations within about one year. He said the
delay would be due to a shortage of available aircraft to lease.
Hugh said the company would be a low-cost, short-haul carrier,
serving domestic and some regional routes.
'Our strategy will be to go after overpriced or under-served
routes, and there are quite a few available,' Hugh said. 'Hanoi to
Siem Reap is very expensive. Hanoi to Hong Kong is both overpriced
and under-served.'
Tourism industry experts say there are too few operators in
Vietnam to meet rising demand on domestic routes.
'Tour operators in Vietnam often have to book tickets very long in
advance due to the limited number of planes,' said Vu The Binh, head
of the Travel Department in Vietnam's Administration of Tourism.
'Vietnam needs as many more domestic airlines as possible.'
The new company will have a licensed capital of 600 billion
Vietnamese dong, about 38 million dollars.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
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