Domestic flight increase proposed following eased social distancing

The Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam have proposed to increase the number of domestic flights and the passenger distance removal after the country has relaxed social distancing.

The Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV) have proposed to increase the number of domestic flights and the passenger distance removal after the country has relaxed social distancing.

In the proposal sent to the Ministry of Transport, the CAAV said that between April 23-25, Vietnamese airlines transported around 10,000 passengers per day in total, accounting for 11% of total their capacity before the Covid-19 outbreak.

  

The Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam has proposed to increase the number of domestic flights 

During this time, the occupancy rate was just 63% of the total seat number because airlines have to conform to the regulation about seat arrangement. This means that two passengers are arranged in one row to ensure a safe distance for virus prevention.

According to CAAV, it is necessary to raise the number of domestic flights on April 29-30 first to meet the higher travel demand for the forthcoming Reunification Day and May Day holidays. The number of return flights on the Hanoi-HCM City route should be increased to 24, instead of a current 20.

For Hanoi/HCM City-Danang routes, two additional flights have been recommended, raising the total to eight return flights every day.

For other domestic routes, the CAAV suggested adding four more return flights.

On May 1-15, the domestic flight frequency needs to be further increased to around 40% of the figure in December 2019, the CAAV added.

For instance, the Hanoi-HCM City route will have 33 daily return flights, including 13 by Vietnam Airlines, 12 b VietJet, six by Bamboo Airways and two by Jetstar Pacific Airlines.

There will have 11 return flights on Hanoi/HCM City-Danang routes, with four by Vietnam Airlines, four by VietJet, two by Bamboo Airways and one by Jetstar Pacific Airlines.

For other domestic routes, the frequency change will be based on airlines’ demand.

The flight frequency for domestic routes has been recommended to be raised to 60% on May 16-31 with 50 daily return flights on Hanoi-HCM City and 20 on Hanoi/HCM City-Danang routes.

Currently, passengers are required to keep a safe distance of at least two metres between each other when queuing for check-in procedures. Airlines have sterilised their aeroplanes and do not serve meals on domestic flights.