Van Don listed in top five airports with quality services

Van Don International Airport has been noted for its good services

The survey, which included 47 airports worldwide where Vietnam Airlines operates, was based on indicators from SKYTRAX, the UK-based international air transport rating organisation.

The other top five were Fukuoka Airport of Japan, Sydney Airport of Australia, Kaohsiung Airport, and Taoyuan Airport of Taiwan.

Van Don in the northern province of Quang Ninh achieved a total APMP score of 78, the highest among Vietnamese airports included in the survey.

Evaluation criteria included reflex indicator points (according to customer assessments), abnormal baggage performance points, safety target points, and on-time performance (OTP) target points.

Of the indicators, the reflex score rated by customers accounted for the highest proportion in the grading structure, including general survey and assessment items in check-in procedures (employee attitude, procedures at counter, queue times) and service to guide passengers on the plane (attitude of the instructor, convenience of the process from the waiting room to the plane).

A corner of Van Don International Airport in Quang Ninh province

Van Don Airport's highest score was in this group of indicators, with an average score of over 80 points, corresponding to a high level of passenger satisfaction.

In the first quarter of 2019, van Don airport welcomed nearly 40,000 passengers on 328 flights to and from Vietnam, operated by Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet, and Bamboo Airways.

The airport is expected to open more domestic flights to key tourism markets and exploit international routes to potential Asian markets like Taiwan, Thailand, China, South Korea, and Japan.

On May 27, the airport will officially open international routes and receive B373-800 aircraft departing from Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport and landing at Van Don, welcoming visitors to tourism destinations in Quang Ninh and Vietnam.

Pham Ngoc Sau, director of Van Don International Airport, said the airport, besides its impressive architecture and quality of facilities, adheres to strict standards of service, ensuring maximum satisfaction for passengers and meeting the stringent criteria of airlines.

“Invested in and operated by Sun Group, Van Don puts the experience and feelings of customers first. The fact that passengers appreciate the attitude of the service staff is an encouragement for us to improve the quality of service,” Sau said.

"In the future, we will strive to improve quality in all criteria, especially waiting time, to bring maximum satisfaction to customers. The airport has also signed a quality commitment with airlines to provide maximum support for their operations,” he added.

Officially inaugurated on December 30, 2018, Van Don is the first private airport in Vietnam with a total investment of VND7.5 trillion ($326 million).

Though it has only recently opened, Van Don has affirmed its prestige, service quality, and attraction reflected by the increasing number of airlines and tour operators, significantly contributing to the growth of 6.6 million visitors to Quang Ninh province in the first four months of this year, up 14 per cent on-year.

In the coming time, the airport will continue to improve service items and green landscapes to bring more "ecological experiences" to passengers, making Van Don equal to modern airports around the world.

As a 4E-class airport according to International Civil Aviation Organisation standards, Van Don can accommodate the most modern aircraft in the world. It has a capacity of 2.5 million passengers per year in the first phase and is expected to receive five million passengers per year by 2030.