HANOI, July 21 (Xinhua) -- Bamboo Airways, owned by Vietnamese property developer FLC Group, plans to launch its first flight on Oct. 10, Vietnam News Agency reported on Saturday.
With a charter capital of 700 billion Vietnamese dong (31.4 million U.S. dollars), the new carrier will focus on direct services connecting international markets with emerging tourist destinations in Vietnam, instead of major urban areas where the aviation infrastructure is already overloaded.
Prior to the Vietnamese government's approval of its operation license on July 9, the airline had already signed deals worth a total of 8.6 billion U.S. dollars to purchase 44 Boeing and Airbus aircraft in March and June.
According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Transport, the local aviation markets annual growth rate will be 16 percent from now to 2020, and 8 percent for 2020-2030. Local carriers are expected to serve 64 million passengers by 2020 and 131 million passengers by 2030.
Vietnam currently has four operational airlines, namely Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Jetstar Pacific, and Vietnam Air Services Company, with national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air currently holding the lion's share of the local aviation market.
Earlier, two Vietnamese carriers, Air Mekong and Indochina Airlines, closed after a short period of operating, mainly due to fierce competition and high operation cost.
Vietnams aviation industry served 24.6 million passengers in the first half of this year, up 15.2 percent on-year, and transported 176,400 tons of cargoes, up 14.8 percent, according to the country's General Statistics Office.
