At present, airlines in Vietnam own 230 planes, up 24 against 2019. Despite having more planes, the airlines have seen a sharp fall in flight number due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since May 1 as the fourth Covid-19 wave hit Vietnam, flights to Noi Bai International Airport have considerably dropped from the peak time of up to 530 flights with a total of 78,000 passengers daily on the occasion of Reunification Day Holiday (April 30).
The airplanes have been left unused at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCM City due to Covid-19
Currently, the airport serves around 120 flights, including cargo flights, with around 5,000 passengers per day.
The Hanoi-HCM City air route which was considered as the world’s second-busiest in November last year just behind South Korea’s Jeju-Seoul, now only has 18 daily flights compared to 130 previously.
Overnight parking demand for planes at Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat airports has drastically increased. So, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has asked to use closed runways for parking.
According to the Vietnam Aviation Business Association, local airlines would witness a total loss of VND15 trillion.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment recently announced Vietnam Airlines losses in the first half of this year of VND10 trillion. The carrier’s overdue debt is VND6.24 trillion.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment forecasted that the aviation sector would continue facing difficulties this year due to Covid-19. If the pandemic is brought under control this year, the sector’s operations would stabilise by 2024.
