Vietnam aircraft fleet to quadruple in 20 years

These figures were cited by Darren Hulst, aircraft manufacturer Boeing’s marketing director for China & Northeast Asia, at a recent press briefing.

The current number of aircraft in the country is set to double in the next two years. Single-aisle aircraft are set to be the main type used for Vietnam’s domestic and regional flights, Hulst said.

He noted that aviation growth has been rapid in Vietnam for several years now. In 2009, all Vietnamese airlines provided 800,000 seats a month, but by this year, the figure had reached 3.3 million.

In the last five years, the number of passengers taking flights has tripled and number of aircraft doubled, he added.

Southeast Asia will need 4,500 new aircraft by 2038, and Vietnam is set to account for a large portion of that demand, Hulst said.

Vietnam now has six domestic carriers and three companies that have applied for aviation permits.

Last year, Vietnam’s 21 state-run airports served 103.5 million passengers, up 11 percent year-on-year, and the figure is set to rise to 112 million this year, according to the Airports Corporation of Vietnam.