As Vietnam’s aviation market heats up, Saigoneers are not the only beneficiaries of a steady stream of additional routes and cheap flights. Case in point: earlier this afternoon (at 12 noon to be exact), Jetstar Pacific launched a ticket sale to promote the upcoming launch of their new direct routes from Ho Chi Minh City to Sydney and Melbourne, starting at US$159.
According to Australian Aviation, the new routes will launch on May 10 and be served by Boeing 787-8s, the same aircraft – albeit an earlier version – used by Vietnam Airlines on their Vietnam-Australia service. Currently, Vietnam’s national airline runs daily flights to both of the Australian metropolises.
The website also reports there will be four and three flights a week to Sydney and Melbourne, respectively, citing a statement issued by Jetstar.
Jetstar group chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka attributed the new routes to Vietnam’s popularity as a holiday destination, which is logical given that data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows that 248,200 Australian nationals visited Vietnam between November 2015 and November 2016, a 2.3% year-on-year increase.
But perhaps the biggest potential lies in helping to serve the ever-growing numbers of international Vietnamese travelers. ABS reports that 69,500 Vietnamese traveled down under in the above time period, a 21% year-on-year increase.
“The growing middle class in Vietnam has made it one of the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world,” Hrdlicka told Australian Aviation about such trends.
Australian carrier Qantas and Vietnam Airlines are joint shareholders of Jetstar Pacific, with the former holding a 30% stake and the latter a 70% stake. According to Traveller, the duo plans to invest US$139 million to more than double their fleet size by 2020.
The sale on tickets only lasts 12 hours, so you best get a-steppin' over to their website if you’re planning to score a good flight deal.
[Photo via Flickr user Master Octa]
