Airlines talk facilitating transport

Representatives from domestic and foreign air carriers suggested the Ministry of Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) announce the plan on upgrading and expanding Ho Chi Minh City-based Tan Son Nhat International Airport so they can prepare operation plans in the time ahead.

They made the suggestion at a conference on air transport policies held by the Transport Ministry in Hanoi on November 18 with the participation of such airlines as Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Cathay Pacific, Thai Cargo, Cebu Pacific and Cagorlux, and airport corporations like the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) and the Vietnam Air Traffic Management Corporation (VATM).

At the conference. (Source: mt.gov.vn)

In reply, the Transport Ministry and CAAV said the upgrading will target the airport apron of Tan Son Nhat International Airport and its terminal T2 whose capacity will be raised from 10 million passengers to 12-13 million per year.

The carriers also called on Vietnamese management agencies to take measures to cut operating costs in Vietnam, which, they said, remain high compared with other regional countries.

Regarding this issue, CAAV explained that the operating costs in Vietnam are the third highest in the region, after Singapore and Thailand. The prices are set in line with guidelines of the International Civil Aviation Organization and many of them have been unchanged for years.

However, CAAV has offered discounts to carriers during their commercial launch of new routes to/from Vietnam, it said.

Representatives of the carriers suggested establishing a committee on airport collaborative decision making in order to manage the operation of planes at airports.

They also proposed administrative punishments for airlines that violate air transport regulations as well as rewards for those who have significantly contributed to rising air transport quality.

Addressing the conference, Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Nhat said the number of foreign airlines to/from Vietnam increased from nearly 20 to 55 at present. The number of international routes to/from the country also climbed from more than 20 to 100.

The amount of passengers and cargos handled at the Vietnamese airports also rose by 14-15 percent annually over the past 20 years, he said.