Vietnam Airlines wants to buy the domestic passenger terminal at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport from the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), which manages and operates dozens of commercial aviation hubs across the country.
T1 terminal at Noi Bai International Airport
Its proposal to the Ministry of Transport effectively puts Vietnam Airlines on a collision course with low-cost carrier VietJet Air, which also wants to buy Terminal 1 at Noi Bai, and the international T2, and has secured a pilot franchise over Lobby E at T1 while authorities assess its plans to improve efficiency.
Vietnam Airlines chairman Pham Viet Thanh said, "There has been a popular trend to privatise major terminals at international airports around the world to faciliate the development of major airlines firms. This trend is really suitable for the Vietnamese Ministry of Transport’s policies to call for private investment in airport infrastructure,”
T1 serves domestic passengers, with T2 handling international flights.
Transport Minister Dinh La Thang has asked the ACV for a privatisation plan to mobilise capital for constuction of the planned Long Thanh International Airport.
“We’ll work out regulations to prevent possible monopoly,” Thang said.
Some 36 domestic and foreign airlines operate an average 340 flights a day at the Noi Bai International Airport.
