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Vietnam’s aviation market has seen
two private airlines stop flying over
the last two years because of losses.
How has VietJetAir been able to re-
tain a foothold in this market?
We had made preparations for five
years before our first flights took off.
Our financial business and operations
had been appraised by international
experts. VietJetAir has received sup-
port from the world’s leading aviation
services and technology corporations,
such as Airbus, CyberSource and Singa-
pore International Airlines Engineering
Company (SIAEC). All out routes were
developed with attention to detail and
quality services. In addition, we have
adopted strict management to ensure
low costs for all flights.
Although VietJetAir has been in op-
eration for more than a year, we have be-
come the largest low-cost carrier and the
second biggest airline in terms of market-
share in Vietnam. We have just launched
the first international flights from Ho Chi
Minh City to Bangkok. That is the clear
evidence that we can still further develop
thanks to our modern Airbus aircraft,
maximum attention to safety measures,
professional and friendly flight attend-
ants and incredible promotions.
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How has VietJetAir’s business per-
formed during its first year of opera-
tion?
The year 2012 was a year of dy-
namic operation with VietJetAir cater-
ing to the growing demand for air trav-
el. We developed a new, modern fleet,
and expanded our services to nine prov-
inces and cities nationwide. VietJetAir
also became the second biggest airline
after the national flag carrier, Vietnam
Airlines, in terms of fleet size and net-
work. We also became the first private
airline to launch international flights.
We transported more than one mil-
lion passengers and especially our Ho
Chi Minh City – Hanoi route has been
shortlisted as “Top 5 most successful
newly-launched routes in the world”
along with leading international carriers
SpiceJet, EasyJet and AirAsia X by the
Budgies & Travel Awards 2012 in Britain.
THE INSIDER
Pritam Singh
,
deputy
general director of
VietJetAir
, talks to
Son Tran
about the
low-cost carrier’s per-
formance during its first
year of operation in a
tough aviation market,
that has seen one pri-
vate carrier go bankrupt
and another halt flights.
47
timeout
PROFILE
Staying
airborne