Vietnamese airlines race to open international routes at the end of the year

Taking advantage of the increased travel demand during the Tet holiday season and international tourism recovering after the pandemic, Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet, and Bamboo Airways are expanding international routes.

Airlines are racing to reopen international routes to meet the increased travel demand during the Tet holiday season and international tourism - Photo: CONG TRUNG

Kicking off a series of activities to expand its international and domestic flight network, Vietjet, owned by billionaire Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, launched a series of new routes from Da Nang to Da Lat, Phu Quoc and Can Tho to Da Lat from November 7.

In particular, Vietjet's Daegu - Cam Ranh route, which was recently launched at the end of October, has created more opportunities to attract a large number of visitors from South Korea - an important market for Vietnam's tourism industry.

South Korea currently leads in the number of international visitors to Vietnam. These new routes are an important "bridge" to help meet demand and attract a large number of international visitors to key tourist destinations such as Nha Trang and Cam Ranh.

These flights not only meet the increasing demand for domestic travel but also lay the foundation for the development of expanded international routes in the future.

Vietnam Airlines also quickly joined the race with a direct flight from Hanoi to Phnom Penh, officially launched on October 27.

With four flights per week, Vietnam Airlines continues to strengthen connections between Vietnam and Cambodia, while expanding its influence in the Indochina market with trans-Indochina routes connecting Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Vientiane.

Meanwhile, Bamboo Airways, after a year of suspending international flights for restructuring, also announced the resumption of flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok from November 26.

Bamboo Airways CEO Luong Hoai Nam affirmed that this is the first step showing the airline's positive recovery. Previously, Bamboo had an extensive international flight network across Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia, Europe and Australia, but had to reduce its scale due to financial difficulties and rising fuel costs.

The return of Bamboo Airways is a positive sign, as the airline plans to add two more aircraft at the end of the year to increase flight frequency and serve peak season travel needs.

International visitors return, pho shops, waiting rooms... in the airport make big profits

Airlines are opening international routes, and airport service businesses such as Tan Son Nhat Airport Services Joint Stock Company (Sasco), chaired by Mr. Johnathan Hanh Nguyen, are making huge profits.

This company operates in many industries, notably selling pho, fast food, business lounges, duty-free goods... at the airport. Sasco also invests in resorts such as L'Azure Resort & Spa in Phu Quoc and traditional Vietnamese products.

In the third quarter of 2024, Sasco recorded revenue of VND 782 billion and gross profit of VND 498 billion - record numbers in a quarter for the company.

With a gross profit margin of nearly 64%, Sasco is recording very high business efficiency, earning 20 VND, gross profit is nearly 13 VND. After deducting expenses, Sasco's pre-tax profit in the third quarter reached 216 billion VND and net profit after tax was 181 billion VND.

In the first 9 months of the year, the company achieved revenue of more than VND 2,117 billion and after-tax profit of VND 294 billion, up 12% and 22% respectively over the same period last year.

Airport business "tycoons" like Sasco focus on the strategy of providing high-end services to high-end customers at major airports in Vietnam.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hang-bay-viet-dua-mo-duong-bay-quoc-te-dip-cuoi-nam-20241030142702427.htm