The application made by Vietravel Airlines satisfies all conditions for licensing as an aviation transport business, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV).

The carrier meets all requirements, including those on capital, fleet capacity, organisation, business plan, and development strategy.

The administration has proposed the Ministry of Transport conduct the necessary procedures to licence the carrier.

Vietravel Airlines plans to use A320, A321, or B737 aircraft, with a fleet of three in the first year of 2021 increasing to eight over the next five years.

CAAV said that such fleet numbers mean that Vietravel Airlines’ fleet would account for just 1.5-3 percent of the local aviation sector, so its licensing would not affect the sector overall.

The carrier has issued four operational plans for exploiting Vietnam’s aviation market in the 2020-2023 period in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vietravel Airlines’ targeted customer group is tourists. It will be based at Phu Bai Airport in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue.

A representative of the carrier said it has made careful preparations to take off in late 2020 and is now working with ATTECH Holding Ltd on aircraft leasing contracts.

2020 is a good time for Vietravel Airlines to take to the skies, the representative said, making full use of market recovery and the completion of aviation infrastructure such as two runways at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi and Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCM City updated.

Owned by the Vietnam Travel and Marketing Transport Joint Stock Company (Vietravel), Vietravel Airlines has a total charter capital of VND700 billion.