Vietnam airports serve over 100 million in 2018

They also handled nearly 1.5 million tons of cargo, 7.7 percent up, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam.

It also reported that local carriers carried more than 50 million passengers and nearly 400,000 tons of goods this year, 14 percent and 26 percent up.

Over 14 million foreign passengers arrived by air in the first 10 months of this year, an increase of 21.3 percent year-on- year, according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.

Four local carriers, Vietnam Airlines, its subsidiary VASCO, VietJet Air and Jetstar Pacific Airlines, and 68 foreign airlines from 25 countries and territories operate in the country. Vietnam's fifth carrier Bamboo Airways is set to fly by year end and a joint venture with AirAsia in August next year.

Vietnam's aviation has been booming in recent years. The country’s biggest airports Tan Son Nhat in Saigon and Noi Bai in Hanoi are usually crowded.

Construction of Long Thanh Airport, 40 km east of HCMC, is expected to share the overload. The airport is planned to be built in three phases over three decades, able to handle 25 million passengers a year by 2025 and 100 million by 2050.