While airlines in Vietnam have enjoyed a positive recovery in the first six months of this year, the number of international passengers has remained modest.
Domestic passengers at an airport in Vietnam
According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV), the number of domestic passengers and cargo volume in the first six months of the year increased sharply compared to the same period last year as well as the first half of 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic occurred.
"Vietnamese airlines served 23.3 million passengers in the first half of 2022, which was equivalent to 60 percent of 2019's figure," CAAV said. "While local airlines transported a total of over 20.8 million passengers in the six months, or 12 percent higher than the same period of 2019, the number of international passengers was only 2.5 million or a quarter of 2019's figure."
CAAV said that the domestic air market had started to recover since April 2022 when the government eased regulations on Covid-19 prevention and control, and it enjoyed robust growth from June.
"The number of domestic passengers reached over five million in June alone, a 39 percent increase compared to the same period of 2019," CAAV said. "However, the number of international passengers remained modest due to the restrictions for Covid-19 prevention in some countries, and the Russia-Ukraine War. We've so far restored flights to 21 countries and territories but only two flights a week to China while flights to Russia are still suspended."
