On April 24, 2024, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) requested that airlines review resources and optimize fleets to consider immediately adding supply capacity on routes from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City to localities on April 27 and from localities back to Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City on May 1.
This move is aimed at meeting air transport demand during the holiday season (from April 27 to May 1), especially given that some domestic routes from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to/from localities have booking rates of 90-100% on April 27 and May 1.
CAAV continues to increase flights during the holiday season. Photo: Le Viet.
The CAAV requested that airlines promptly implement and report (if any) as soon as possible to receive guidance and resolution when implementing the addition of supply capacity. To address the current shortage of aircraft, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has directed an increase in the coordination parameters for take-off and landing time (slot) at Noi Bai airport from 37 flights/hour during daytime to 42 flights/hour and 30 flights/hour during nighttime to 32 flights/hour.
According to the survey on April 24, some routes from Hanoi on April 27 have run out of direct flights. For example, passengers to Quy Nhon can only connect with a one-way fare of over 4 million VND on the first day of the holiday.
Also, on April 27, one-way tickets to Con Dao (connecting flights) cost over 6 million VND and sold out on April 28. The route Hanoi – Hue on April 25 has an average ticket price of only 1 million VND, but by April 26, it had doubled and reached over 4 million VND on the first day of the holiday (April 27) since all direct flights were sold out.
The tense situation is also happening on some routes from Ho Chi Minh City. Currently, tourists who want to go to Quang Ninh on April 27 have only one flight left, which is provided by Vietnam Airlines, at a one-way ticket price of over 3.5 million VND.
The ticket price to Dien Bien is expected to peak on the first day of the holiday, reaching 3.6 million VND, and there is only one flight left, which is provided by Vietjet Air. However, some routes such as Ho Chi Minh City – Da Nang, Hai Phong, Vinh, Thanh Hoa still have many empty seats, with ticket prices ranging from 2 to 3 million VND.
Domestic passengers find it difficult to buy tickets to some tourist destinations on April 27. Photo: Manh Thang.
Previously, Vietnamese airlines planned to supply around 900,000 seats on domestic routes. The routes from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to localities reached 657,000 seats, corresponding to 3,400 flights, respectively increased by 4.2% and 5.5% compared to the same period in 2023. However, the planned operating fleet of Vietnamese airlines during this period is 165-170 aircraft, a decrease of 40-45 aircraft compared to the same period last year.
Vietnam Airlines plans to operate more than 2,000 flights in late hours after 9 pm daily on routes between many tourist destinations to increase options for passengers. Some Vietnam Airlines business class seats are priced at only over 1.9 million VND (including tax and fees) for a few domestic flights with departure times before 6 am and after 9 pm.
In addition to adding night flights for domestic routes, Vietjet Air continues to increase the frequency of flights between Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh City – Dien Bien to 28 flights/week. The route Hanoi – Dien Bien will increase to 14 flights per week from May 3 to 11.
During the holiday season from April 30 to May 1, Vietjet adds 86,000 seats, which is equivalent to over 450 flights, on tourist routes, increasing the frequency of flights to and from Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Nha Trang.
