In June, the average on-time performance (OTP) of the Vietnamese aviation industry saw a significant decline, reaching 69.3%, down 12.9 percentage points from the previous month.

Bamboo Airways recorded the highest on-time rate at 88.3%, followed by Pacific Airlines and Vietnam Airlines. Bamboo Airways was the only airline to improve its on-time rate in June, increasing by 2.8 percentage points compared to May.

The overall flight cancellation rate for the industry in June remained stable at 0.5%, similar to May.

In early July, the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam issued a directive to domestic airlines, urging them to actively work with global aircraft leasing partners to secure additional planes and enhance capacity on domestic and tourist routes.

In response, domestic airlines have been making efforts to expand their fleets to meet the high demand for domestic tickets amid a shortage of aircraft.

Bamboo Airways has leased three additional A320 aircraft since the beginning of the year, aiming to expand its fleet to 12 aircraft by 2024.

Vietnam Airlines welcomed a new A320 aircraft in early July, while Pacific Airlines announced the addition of an Airbus A321 leased from Vietnam Airlines to its fleet.

With the expanded fleet, airlines are increasing the frequency of both domestic and international flights. Vietnam Airlines is ramping up operations on domestic routes such as Hanoi - Da Lat, Hanoi - Phu Quoc, Ho Chi Minh City - Thanh Hoa, and Ho Chi Minh City - Chu Lai. Pacific Airlines is focusing on routes between Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, Da Nang, and Chu Lai.

Bamboo Airways plans to increase frequencies on its existing routes and resume some domestic routes such as Ho Chi Minh City - Da Lat, Ho Chi Minh City - Thanh Hoa, and Ho Chi Minh City - Phu Quoc. The airline is also considering resuming international routes such as Ho Chi Minh City - Bangkok (Thailand) to meet the travel demand.

As airlines have added more planes and increased flight frequencies, airfares have noticeably decreased.

N. Huyen