National airline Bamboo Airways is expected to be listed on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange ahead in the fourth quarter of the year, with the firm aiming to double its number of domestic routes in addition to restarting its air routes to the United States by the end of 2021 or in early 2022.

The move comes after the airline’s original plan to be listed as a public company was postponed due to the effects of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) which hit during the second quarter of the year.

Currently, Bamboo Airways is planning to purchase 60 engines worth US$2 billion from the General Electric Group of the United States for its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner wide-body fleet. The firm will also continue to expand its operation once the COVID-19 has been fully brought under control locally, according to Trinh Van Quyet, CEO of Bamboo Airways.

In addition, the airline is poised to hire more aircraft over the course of the year as it seeks to expand operations. Indeed, the airline is currently operating between 45 and 50 domestic flights each day, with this figure expected to increase to over 100 flights per day by early June, which is equivalent to 80% of its flights in the pre-epidemic period.

Despite suffering revenue losses of more than VND 1,500 billion during the first quarter, the airline plans to double its number of domestic and international routes to 60 and 25, respectively, by the end of the year.

Noting that Vietnam is one of the global aviation markets that are recovering well post COVID-19, Bamboo Airways CEO Quyet said air passengers feel secure after the COVID-19 epidemic has been brought under control.

 “Domestic tourism is expected to enjoy robust growth in the near future due to the country’s ban on international commercial flights,” said the CEO, citing statistics that domestic airlines served 55 million passengers last year, an annual rise of 11%.