Prices of many aviation services increased simultaneously

From October 1, prices of most airline services will increase to cover costs and reinvest capital.

Since mid-2015, Vietnam Airports Corporation (ACV) has repeatedly submitted proposals to the Ministry of Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam to increase aviation service fees.

The Civil Aviation Authority has also repeatedly reviewed and submitted to the Ministry of Transport to issue new prices. Recently, the Ministry of Transport has officially decided to adjust aviation service prices. Thus, with Decision No. 2345 dated August 8, 2017 signed by the Minister of Transport, the prices and price ranges of some specialized aviation services at Vietnam's airports will increase.

Increase "good hour" fees

The first type of fee increased according to the above decision is the fee for taking off/landing aircraft according to each time frame. Peak hours have high fees, off-peak hours have low fees, and this fee is also based on flights taking off/landing at airports (CHK) group A, B.

Tan Son Nhat International Airport.

Accordingly, during normal hours, the take-off and landing fees applied from October 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018 will be adjusted to increase by 5% compared to current regulations. From July 1, 2018, this fee will continue to increase by another 10%. The fee collected during peak hours will be applied at 115% of normal hours, while during off-peak hours, this figure is only 85%.

Thus, during normal hours, the take-off and landing price applied from October 1, 2017 for ATR70 aircraft is 698,000 VND/time, A320, A321 aircraft is more than 1.5 million VND/time, A350, B787, B777, A330 aircraft is about more than 5.8 million VND/time.

Group C airports will apply a price equal to 60% of the prescribed price for Group A and B airports.

Regarding the application of take-off and landing fees based on time frames, the leaders of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam said that the current overload during peak hours at some airports is mainly due to the large output and growth rate of domestic flights. Therefore, applying a take-off and landing price policy for domestic flights based on time frames will influence domestic airlines to adjust flight times, ensuring compliance with the operating capacity of airports.

According to Mr. Lai Xuan Thanh, Chairman of ACV Board of Directors, the price of aircraft take-off and landing services for domestic flights has been maintained stable for 5 years (from 2011 to present). Compared to the average of ASEAN region, the price of aircraft take-off and landing services for domestic flights in Vietnam is quite low, only 47-68% depending on the type of aircraft.

Increase service prices, security screening

From October 1, the price of aviation security services will be applied at 2 USD/passenger for international flights compared to the current 1.5 USD.

For domestic passengers, the increase will be applied in 3 stages. From October 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017, the new price will be 11,818 VND/passenger compared to the current price of 9,090 VND. From January 1, 2018 to March 31, 2018, the price will be 13,636 VND/passenger and from April 1, 2018 onwards, the price will be 18,181 VND/passenger.

ACV said that Vietnam's current collection rate is lower than that of the ASEAN region. Specifically, for international passengers, Singapore is applying a rate of 6 USD/passenger, Myanmar 6.5 USD/passenger, Cambodia 3 USD/passenger and China 2 USD/passenger (both domestic and international).

Guests denied entry must pay up to 90 USD/guest/day

Notably, the Ministry of Transport has decided to add regulations on security service prices for passengers who are denied entry and stay for more than 24 hours. Accordingly, carriers whose passengers are detained for 24 hours or more will have to pay 9 USD/passenger/hour or 90 USD/passenger/day. This regulation is expected to influence airlines to quickly arrange flights for passengers who are denied entry to leave Vietnam early.

Regarding international passenger flight service prices, the prices according to the new decision of the Ministry of Transport basically remain the same, only increasing at some newly invested and upgraded ports such as Da Nang, Cat Bi and Vinh.

From October 1, prices of most airline services will increase to cover costs and reinvest capital.

Accordingly, the passenger service price at Da Nang (new international terminal) is 20 USD/passenger compared to the current price of 16 USD/passenger. This price at Vinh and Cat Bi airports is 14 USD compared to the current 8 USD/passenger.

For domestic flights, passenger service prices will be adjusted in 4 stages. Specifically, from October 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017, the applicable fee for Group A airports is 75,000 VND/passenger, Group B is 70,000 VND/passenger and Group C remains the same as present at 60,000 VND/passenger. Thus, at Group A and B airports, this price has increased by about 7% compared to the current price. From January 1, 2018 to March 31, 2018, the applicable fee for Group A, B and C airports is 80,000, 75,000 and 60,000 VND/passenger, respectively.

From April 1, 2018 to June 30, 2018, domestic passengers at airports in groups A, B, and C will have to pay VND85,000, VND75,000, and VND60,000 per passenger, respectively. In the final stage, the highest price applied at airports in group A is VND100,000 per passenger, in group B it is VND80,000 per passenger, and in group C it is VND60,000 per passenger.

Explaining this price increase, an ACV representative said that the current domestic passenger service price in Vietnam is only about 57% of the average price in the ASEAN region.

According to Lao Dong Newspaper