WITH South-east Asia’s skies becoming increasingly crowded, Vietnam’s budget carrier VietJet Air is planning to expand across North Asia.
Chu Cuong, board member on VietJet’s board of directors, told TTG Asia e-Daily that they will now be focusing further northwards, adding that chartered flights will also be included in the expansion strategy.
“There is a very big number of growing middle class Vietnamese who want to travel out of the country,” he said, adding that VietJet can offer more competitive pricing being the first privately-owned airline in Vietnam.
Vietjet first took to the skies at the end of 2011 and now operates a fleet of 29 A320 family aircraft. Earlier this month, the carrier placed a firm order with Airbus for the purchase of 30 A321s, bringing the total order to 99 A320 family aircraft.
Commenting on this purchase, Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, president and CEO of VietJet, said: “VietJet has grown faster than expected in the last few years and our previous purchasing plans for new aircraft could not keep up with developing demand.”
According to Cuong, VietJet now accounts for about 38 per cent of domestic seat capacity, and the average passenger load factor averages at an impressive 90 per cent so far this year.
When questioned about the status of its IPO, Cuong said it will be made available by 1Q2016.
