Vietnam’s budget airline to launch direct Ho Chi Minh City - Melbourne air route
Friday, January 13, 2023, 17:01 GMT+7
Vietnam’s budget air carrier Vietjet has announced plans to open a direct air route between Ho Chi Minh City and Melbourne, the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, starting from March 31.
The information was disclosed during a visit of a delegation of the Victoria State authorities to Ho Chi Minh City this week.
The air route is expected to contribute to strengthening the economic, trade, and tourism ties between Vietnam and Australia.
In particular, flights are set to take off from Ho Chi Minh City at 9:50 am (local time) and land at Melbourne Airport at 10:35 pm (local time) on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Meanwhile, flights from Melbourne will depart at 0:30 am (local time) and arrive in Ho Chi Minh City at 5:15 am (local time) on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
The frequency of flights will increase to seven flights per week from December 2024.
Vietjet will use A330 wide-body aircraft on the route.
Speaking at a ceremony to announce the opening of the air route, Tim Pallas, Minister for Trade and Investment of Victoria, hailed Vietjet’s decision to open an air route between Vietnam and Melbourne, saying that “the arrival of another airline from Southeast Asia is a victory of Victoria’s economy and local jobs, and a reflection of the state’s strengths in tourism and export."
With the support of the authorities in Vietnam and Australia, Vietjet will contribute to creating a new driving force for tourism, trade, and economy of Vietnam, Vietnamese localities, Victoria State, and Australia.
With a wide flight network, Vietjet will open up opportunities to discover Australia for passengers in Asia.
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| Deputy general director of Vietjet Nguyen Thanh Son and Jim Parashos, chief of aviation at Melbourne Airport, sign a cooperation agreement. |
Australia is a well-known tourist and studying destination. In 2019, over 123,000 Vietnamese tourists visited Australia.
Trade between the two countries reached an all-time high of US$12.4 billion in 2021.
These figures will improve further once Vietjet’s flights to large cities in Australia are operated this year.
At a meeting with Vietnamese National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue early this week, Pallas expressed a desire to boost the cooperation in energy transition, education and training, aviation, and tourism between Victoria and Vietnam in 2023 and following years.
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