Bamboo plans aircraft purchases

28 Jun 2017 2060 | Business & Trade Fairs

HANOI FLC Group, the owner of Viet Bamboo Airlines Company Limited (Bamboo Airways) plans to buy 10 737 aircraft as it prepares for a 2018 launch.

Vietnam Net Bridges reported the group told the US aircraft manufacturer Boeing, last week, that it plans to place orders for 15 planes, but 10 would be needed to start operations in 2018.

FLC plans to buy 10 737 Max 9s and five 777Xs. The 737 MAX 9 has a capacity of 185 passengers, while the 777X can carry up to 300 passengers.

If the deal is completed, Bamboo Airways will own 10 737 Max 9s, 2018 to 2020. The remaining five aircraft will be delivered after 2020 to serve its international flights.

In May, FLC Group confirmed a board decision to establish Viet Bamboo Airways Company with startup capital of VND700 billion (USD31.4 million).

The airline says it take a different tact than its competitors by first focusing on direct services connecting regional tourism markets with emerging tourist destinations in Vietnam, instead of establishing domestic routes that it claimed are overloaded.

The priority will be given to localities where FLC has built major tourist complexes, including Quang Ninh, Hai Phong in the north, Thanh Hoa and Quy Nhon (Binh Dinh province) in the central region, and Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa province) and Phu Quoc (Kien Giang province) in the south.

At present, there are 21 airports across the country, but just two major airports, Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport and Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport, account for 75% of all passenger traffic.