The Ministry of Transport has given the go ahead for Vinpearl Air JSC under private conglomerate Vingroup to seek the Prime Minister’s approval for its investment plan.

Illustrative image (Source: https://tuoitre.vn)

The firm plans to operate passenger and freight services with a fleet of 36 aircraft by 2025 on international and domestic routes.

The project is in line with the government’s plans for the development of new air transportation enterprises and will facilitate private economic development, the ministry said.

However, it noted that the operation of 36 aircraft is likely to exceed market demand, so the ministry has recommended Vinpearl Air to invest in only 30 planes by 2025.

The ministry said if the Prime Minister approves the investment plan, it will direct the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) to appraise the proposal for  regulated air transport business, and then submit its recommendations to the Prime Minister again for a final decision.

In accordance with its plan, Vinpearl Air will begin domestic and international flights from July 2020 with a fleet of six aircraft. The airline, which has an initial total investment of 4.7 trillion VND (202.6 million USD), will increase the number of its aircraft to 36 by 2025, adding six to its fleet each year.

Narrow-body jets Airbus A320 and A321 or Boeing B737, and wide-body aircrafts Airbus A330 and A350 or Boeing 787 will be used on its 62 domestic routes and 93 international routes by 2025.

Vinpearl Air is planning to choose Noi Bai as its base airport, with two overnight aprons by 2020.