According to statistics from the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam, the booking rate for the next month on domestic flights is higher than average for some routes connecting tourist destinations from localities, especially on weekends and days close to departure time.
Airfares “cool down”
Recently, the high price of air tickets has significantly affected the transportation market. The main reason is determined to be that many aircraft have to stop operating for engine maintenance as required by the manufacturer and some airlines have restructured and reduced the number of aircraft.
At a recent conference on aviation-tourism linkage organized by Nhan Dan Newspaper, Mr. Nguyen Quang Trung, Head of Planning and Development Department (Vietnam Airlines Corporation) said that in fact, the increase in airfares of airlines is part of the general trend of the global aviation industry due to the impact of high fuel prices, with an average increase of 34% in 2024 compared to 2019 (from 76.7 USD/barrel to 102.8 USD/barrel).
According to Mr. Luong Hoai Nam, General Director of Bamboo Airways, airfares will only cool down when the number of aircraft of airlines increases. Currently, domestic airlines are operating about 160 aircraft, a decrease of 60-70 aircraft compared to the period before the Covid-19 pandemic. Although it is still possible to lease aircraft, airlines do not want to bring them back because the more they fly, the more they lose. "The current cost level combined with the price ceiling mechanism makes domestic flights unprofitable. We need to create incentives for airlines to bring aircraft back and open more routes, only then can airfares cool down," Mr. Nam analyzed.
Currently, the average booking rate on flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to localities reaches more than 50% on the days leading up to and on weekends, with the rate fluctuating between 20-40% on further days. Some tourist routes from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have higher than average rates such as Hanoi-Quy Nhon (Binh Dinh), Hanoi-Phu Quoc (Kien Giang), Hanoi-Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa), Ho Chi Minh City-Nha Trang, Ho Chi Minh City-Dien Bien.
Regarding airfares, Vietnamese airlines announce many levels for operating flights, many of which are significantly lower than the maximum level prescribed for basic economy class.
For example, the Hanoi-Quy Nhon route, the fare excluding taxes and fees ranges from 1.9 million to 2.4 million VND, equivalent to 67-83% of the maximum rate as prescribed (2.89 million VND). The Hanoi-Phu Quoc route, the fare excluding taxes and fees ranges from 2.7 million to 3.4 million VND, equivalent to 69-87% of the maximum rate as prescribed (4 million VND). For departure dates further away, airlines also announce many low fares for passengers to choose from.
“It can be seen that when planning to book flight tickets early and far from the departure date, in addition to having more opportunities to book seats on crowded tourist routes, passengers will also have more options for prices suitable to their conditions and travel needs,” said a representative of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam.
Passengers planning their travel and choosing to book tickets early also allows airlines to proactively allocate resources, optimize aircraft operations, limit flight cancellations and reduce pressure in the context of the current shrinking aircraft fleet.
Support fleet development
Deputy Director of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam Do Hong Cam said that according to research and assessment by the Association of Asia-Pacific Airlines (AAPA), airfares in the world today and in the near future will tend to increase higher than before.
“With airlines facing rising fuel costs, pressure to upgrade their fleets, additional leasing/purchase, aircraft maintenance, labor shortages, airport service prices, etc. continuing as they are now, it is forecasted that global airfares will increase by 3-7% in 2024 and will continue to increase in the following years,” Mr. Cam said.
Having identified the difficulties and challenges in 2024, the aviation industry has promptly implemented solutions to minimize negative impacts and ensure appropriate supply. The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has created conditions for airlines to increase operations and optimize the exploitation of existing aircraft fleets; speed up the process of searching and negotiating to lease additional aircraft during peak periods; coordinate effective take-off and landing times, and adjust the operating time of aircraft during the day of airlines to transfer flights.
In reducing ticket prices, airlines all set prices from low to high so that the majority of customers and people can access their payment level. In the new context, airlines also need to survive and develop, if there is no profit, there will be no attraction for opening more airlines. The leaders of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam hope that localities will pay attention, connect aviation and tourism, contribute to airlines increasing flight routes, and support solving the problem of input costs.
Mr. Le Hong Ha, General Director of Vietnam Airlines Corporation, acknowledged that there is still a lot of room for cooperation to reduce ticket prices and improve efficiency between aviation and tourism. Tourism businesses should consider and have a policy to reduce the first night's accommodation price for passengers flying at night. Aviation and tourism need to "join hands" more practically and clearly to attract, promote, create new markets, new habits, in order to effectively exploit this potential. In addition, in the context of the Vietnamese and world aviation industries lacking aircraft, airlines need to coordinate closely with each other, share experiences, methods, and strive to exploit them most effectively.
Vietjet Air Deputy General Director Do Xuan Quang suggested that in order for Vietnam's aviation and tourism to develop, it is necessary to build programs to promote Vietnam's tourism at the national level, support sustainable tourism development, not just stop at the temporary combination between tourism and aviation businesses but long-term "handshakes", on the basis of companionship and sharing common benefits.
“In the context of many challenges for both tourism and aviation, we recommend that the Government continue to have a support mechanism for environmental taxes on gasoline, reduce fees for new international routes, and the banking sector reduce interest rates for aviation, hotels, tourism, etc. We also recommend that the State have a policy to support the development of the fleet of Vietnamese airlines; aviation authorities manage flight slots (take-off and landing times), and effectively manage operations at airports to increase capacity through airports,” Mr. Do Xuan Quang proposed.
Source: https://nhandan.vn/hang-khong-tang-tai-dap-ung-dip-cao-diem-he-post815427.html
Source: https://www.vietnam.vn/hang-khong-tang-tai-dap-ung-dip-cao-diem-he/
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