In order for Vietnamese airlines to be able to operate Chinese COMAC aircraft, it is necessary to amend the decree and circular to grant type certificates for these aircraft.
Chinese-made COMAC ARJ21 aircraft on display at Da Nang airport in March 2024 - Photo: NGOC DUC
The Ministry of Transport has sent an official dispatch to seek comments from the Ministry of Justice on applying the simplified procedures for drafting decrees and circulars to grant licenses for the operation of COMAC aircraft manufactured in China in Vietnam.
According to the Ministry of Transport, based on the proposal of Vietjet Aviation Joint Stock Company (Vietjet), Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) on operating COMAC aircraft in Vietnam and the results of the meeting between Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha and the Vice President of COMAC, the ministry has reviewed the provisions of current laws.
The Ministry of Transport said that Clause 2, Article 12d of Decree No. 92/2016/ND-CP of the Government regulating conditional business lines and occupations in the field of civil aviation (amended and supplemented by Decree No. 89/2019/ND-CP of the Government) stipulates: "Types of aircraft imported into Vietnam are granted aircraft type certificates by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) or the Vietnamese aviation authority".
Thus, according to current regulations, aircraft types imported into Vietnam are granted aircraft type certificates by the FAA or EASA or the Vietnamese aviation authority (Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam). Currently, regulations do not allow the Vietnamese aviation authority to recognize aircraft type certificates for aircraft that have not been granted type certificates by the FAA and EASA.
In practice, the type certification procedure is only carried out when Vietnam is the design country and the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam develops and promulgates the standards, and has sufficient qualified human resources to ensure the implementation of the certificate approval process.
However, it takes many years to develop standards, complete procedures and prepare sufficient human resources. The certification process will also take a long time. In fact, EASA did it within 8 years for the Airbus A350, FAA did it within 8 years for the Boeing B787.
According to the Ministry of Transport, the recent COVID-19 pandemic and wars in some areas have affected the supply chain of materials and the ability to provide aircraft in full and on time from traditional aircraft manufacturers such as Airbus, Boeing and Embraer (certified by the FAA and EASA).
In addition, the impact of the recall on Pratt & Witney engines significantly affects Vietnam's aircraft operations.
In that situation, limiting aircraft operating in Vietnam to only having type certificates issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam or FAA or EASA (without allowing recognition by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam) will limit the opportunities for Vietnamese airlines to access aircraft designed and manufactured by other countries with global capacity in science and technology.
On that basis, the Ministry of Transport proposed that the Government abolish Clause 2, Article 12d of Decree No. 92/2016/ND-CP to suit the actual situation and remove difficulties and obstacles in the process of putting COMAC aircraft into operation in Vietnam.
Proposal to recognize standards of Chinese-made aircraft
In addition to amending the decree, the Ministry of Transport also proposed amending a number of articles of Circular No. 01/2011/TT-BGTVT promulgating the set of civil aviation safety regulations in the field of aircraft and aircraft operations.
Because, currently, the civil aviation safety regulations allow for the recognition of aircraft approval standards and type certificates of five aviation authorities: the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Canada, Brazil and the Russian Federation. The Chinese Aviation Administration is not included in this list.
The amendment and supplementation of the above content is very necessary when China is currently also an aircraft design country, has produced COMAC ARJ21-700 (C909) and C919 aircraft operating in the Chinese domestic market and in a foreign country (C909 aircraft operating in Indonesia), and has a history of safe operation.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/sua-nghi-dinh-de-khai-thac-may-bay-comac-cua-trung-quoc-tai-viet-nam-20250228164951686.htm
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