State President, Party leader To Lam seeks Boeing investment in Vietnam component plant

At a meeting in New York, the U.S., on Sunday with Brendan Nelson, senior vice president of Boeing and chairman of Boeing Global, he said Vietnam is committed to enabling American investors, including Boeing, to invest in its market.

Referring to Boeing's commitment to helping Vietnam in develop its aviation and aerospace industries, he sought human resource training, technology transfer and research and development from the company and exhorted it to get Vietnamese partners more involved in its supply chain.

He also called on it to work closely with Vietnamese partners on recently signed aircraft purchase deals.

Vietnam is investing heavily in aviation infrastructure, he pointed out, referring to some notable projects that are under way like the 5,000-hectare Long Thanh Airport in southern Dong Nai province and an additional terminal at the city’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport.

The Long Thanh Airport, to cost an estimated US$16.06 billion, will be a 4F class airport and aim to become a regional transit hub.

Boeing 787 Dreamliners are built at the aviation company's North Charleston, South Carolina, assembly plant on May 30, 2023. Photo by AFP

In response, Nelson said Boeing has held several meetings with Vietnam Airlines to provide financial support and discuss solutions to various challenges.

Both parties are determined to fulfill a purchase agreement signed during U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to Vietnam last year on time, he said.

Nelson praised the Vietnamese leadership's vision for assigning an important role for the aviation industry in social and economic development, and promised Boeing would support its development with a focus on staff training and building infrastructure such as airports and maintenance facilities.

Boeing is the largest aerospace company in the world and a leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners and defense and space systems.

It employs over 140,000 workers in 65 countries and generated over $94.5 billion in revenues in 2020.