Effectively exploiting flight routes at Vinh Airport

(Baonghean) - Vinh International Airport is currently opening more flight routes to meet people's travel needs.

Currently, Vinh International Airport has 7 domestic routes including Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Buon Me Thuot, Da Lat, Cam Ranh and Pleiku (Gia Lai) with a normal frequency of 16 flights/day of 5 airlines. In the first 6 months of 2016, the number of passengers passing through Vinh Airport reached nearly 1 million passengers, an increase of 27.8% compared to the same period in 2015.

Check baggage at Vinh International Airport.

One month ago, on June 8, the direct flight from Vinh to Bangkok, opened by Vietravel in collaboration with the People's Committee of Nghe An province, was officially launched. According to the assessment, opening a direct flight to Bangkok is suitable for the needs and tastes of the people, especially in the 3 summer months. The flight was put into operation with a frequency of 1 flight/month, using a 180-seat A320 aircraft of Thai Vietjet. The price was also fixed, including the round-trip ticket price and the price including the package tour provided by Vietravel.

Ms. Vo Thi Thu Hoai - Deputy Director of Vietnam Transport Tourism and Marketing Joint Stock Company - Vietravel Vinh Branch said: Thanks to good propaganda and promotion work and Vietravel's promotional policy, with the price of 6,990,000 VND/person, tourists can use professional services, visit and experience famous tourist attractions of Thai people... To promptly meet the demand for tourism to Thailand of Nghe An people and the North Central provinces, in July 2016, Vietravel organized 5 charter flights on July 9, 13, 17, 21, 25 and all flights were fully booked (180 seats/flight).

The opening of a new international flight route to Bangkok (Thailand) is making a good impression on Vinh International Airport. Currently, there are 5 airlines including Vietnam Airlines, Vasco, Vietjet Air, Jetstar Pacific and Thai Vietjet. There are peak times when Vinh Airport welcomes 7 flights at the same time, 80 flight attendants are assigned to shifts to serve passengers attentively, especially during peak times at noon (12:00) and in the evening (19:00-20:00). Vietjet Air is the most efficient, with the most passengers. Since the beginning of the year, Vietjet Air has had 186,000 passengers passing through Vinh Airport, with about 1,220 flights.

However, some routes such as Vinh - Nha Trang (started from December 2015) but not many airlines participate, only Jetstar has operated but the schedule of bringing passengers to Nha Trang is unstable, sometimes arriving in Nha Trang at midnight, very inconvenient for passengers. In addition, Vinh - Bangkok flights are seasonal, only in 3 summer months serving tourists and passengers traveling in the opposite direction from Thailand to Vinh have not been exploited. The international flight Vinh - Vientiane was highly expected because of the large number of Vietnamese people in Laos, but after less than 1 year of implementation (from October 2015), it has now had to close.

According to the leader of Vinh International Airport, in recent times, many new routes have been opened and have been effective. In the future, we hope to receive support to open more domestic and international routes from Vinh to Can Tho, Vinh - Phu Quoc; Vinh - Singapore, Vinh - Taiwan... To meet the needs of receiving passengers, Vinh International Airport needs to expand to meet the travel needs of passengers.

Vinh Airport has been approved by the Ministry of Transport to be upgraded to an international airport from now until 2020 and oriented after 2030 (Decision No. 347/QD-BGTVT dated January 29, 2015). Vinh Airport serves the socio-economic development, defense and security of Nghe An, the North Central provinces and is a backup airport for Noi Bai Airport.

Check in at Vinh Airport

Currently, the Provincial People's Committee is proposing that the Ministry of Transport create favorable conditions for investment in building more aircraft parking spaces, extending runways, renovating the old domestic terminal into an international terminal; and replacing the current airport fence with a solid fence to ensure aviation safety.

To plan for upgrading and expansion, the Provincial People's Committee and the Department of Transport need to have a plan to develop a specific plan for Vinh International Airport in the future, not grant land for projects to build factories and high-rise buildings near Vinh Airport, reserve enough land area to expand the airport in the future, strengthen the role of the Port Authority in State management at Vinh Airport...

Investing in good infrastructure is the basis for developing existing flight routes, and at the same time exploiting and opening new flight routes to meet people's travel needs and serve the requirements of socio-economic development in the area.

Thu Huyen