VietNamNet Bridge – According to IATA’s (International Air
Transport Association) forecasts, Vietnam’s aviation industry will
see a high growth rate of 9.5 percent in 2011.

Giovanni Bisignani, Chief Executive Officer of IATA

In an interview given to Dau Tu newspaper, Giovanni Bisignani, Chief
Executive Officer of IATA, said that during his business trip to Vietnam he saw high potentials of Vietnam’s
aviation market.

He said that despite bid difficulties, airlines in Asia Pacific,
including Vietnam,
can still earn high profits, estimated at $4.6 billion in 2011. It is partially
because the expected economic growth rate of the region is at 6.9 percent,
which is higher than the world’s average growth rate. In 2010, Vietnam Airlines
saw its number of passengers increase by 30 percent from the previous year, and
it had one more new aircraft every month. This shows that Vietnam’s
aviation market has great potential.

According to IATA’s forecasts, Vietnam’s aviation industry will
see a growth rate of 9.5 percent in 2011. It is expected that by 2014, Vietnam will
become the third fastest growing market in terms of carrying international
passengers and cargo and will show an overall growth rate of 10 percent. It may
also be the second fastest growing market in terms of carrying domestic
passengers.

In order to obtain that goal, Vietnam’s aviation industry needs
to be built and supported by practical policies that show that this is a
dynamic industry which requires regular changes.

Regarding the world’s aviation market in 2011, Mr Giovanni Bisignani
said that after a decade of recession from 2001 to 2009, the world’s aviation
market has a net profit of $15.1 billion, a undeniable sign of recovery. The
latest forecast about the net profit for 2011 says that is is possible that
profits will be $9.1 billion, higher than the forecast given previously by
IATA.

It is expected that in 2011 the demand for carrying passengers and cargo
in the globe would increase by 5.2 and 5.5 percent, respectively.  The passenger carrying capacity will increase
by 0.5 percent. Since the operational environment has become tougher, it will
be difficult to obtain high profits. The biggest obstacle for airlines is the
possible increases in fuel prices.  Fuel
expenses are forecasted to be for 27 percent of the total expenses.  The figure was 26 percent in 2010.

Besides, another factor that may lead to decreases in turnover is low
GDP growth rate which is forecast to be 2.6 percent, much lower than the 3.5
percent level in 2010.

When asked what suggestions IATA can make for Vietnam, so that the
country’s aviation industry still can keep a high growth rate in the next
years, Mr Giovanni Bisignani said that first of all, the national flag air
carrier Vietnam Airlines should prioritize following global technology
standards on air traffic control in accordance with the regulations of the
International Civil Aviation Ofrganisation ICAO. He said he hopes that the
Vietnam Air Traffic Control Centre will use air traffic surveillance technology
ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast) and Performance Based
Navigation (PBN). ADS-B and PBN allow aircrafts to fly more efficiently using
satellite-based navigation systems and improve safety conditions when landing.

The government of Vietnam
has programmed the airport system already, but still needs  to set up reasonable policies in order to
persuade investors to pour money to build aircrafts. If the government is
determined enough and has reasonable policies, just within 36 months it can secure
an international airport, capable of serving 50 million passengers a year.

The IATA’s chief said that IATA highly appreciates the policy on airfare
reduction in the last three years (since April 2009) which has helped ease the
expenses for domestic airports.

He also said that IATA is waiting for the government to ratify the
Montreal 99 Treaty, so that the IATA e-freight program can be applied at
Vietnam Airlines and other airlines in Vietnam.

Source: Dau tu