VNA aims to become Southeast Asia’s No. 2 Carrier by 2020

March 13, 2012 | 18:00

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Viet Nam Airlines (VNA) aims to become Southeast Asia’s second-biggest full-service carrier by the end of the decade as it more than doubles its fleet in a bid to surpass Thai Airways International Pcl (THAI) and Malaysian Airline System Bhd. (MAS).

Illustration photo

The national flag carrier will be number two after Singapore Airlines, said Chief Executive Officer Pham Ngoc Minh at a briefing held on March 12 in Hanoi.

According to Mr. Minh, the state-owned carrier may rank third by 2015.

The carrier intends to add Airbus SAS A320neo and A350 aircraft, as well as Boeing (BA) Co. 787s, as it grows to 170 planes in order to support expansion plans and tap rising domestic travel.

The airline’s passenger traffic grew about 11 per cent last year, carrying 12.3 million passengers.

The VNA will cancel plans for an initial public offering until the second half of next year from this year because the “market is not yet attractive to investors,” Mr. Minh said.

VGP

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