Indochina Airlines has to stop its operation after one
year of flying, Vietjet Air has delayed the launching of the first commercial
flight for several times, while passengers of Air Mekong complain about the
services. Experts say there are still many things private airlines need to learn
in order to fly.

In 2007, the aviation market welcomed the establishment of a series of private
airlines, namely Indochina Airlines, VietJet, Air Mekong, Trai Thien and Blue
Sky. Except Blue Sky which has been rarely mentioned because it has not revealed
the flight plan, all other air carriers have problems.

VietJet is the first private airline which got the flight license in December
2007. At first, the air carrier planned to launch its flight in late 2008.
However, it then delayed the plan to March 2009, then to October 2001. After
that, the air carrier decided to make another 5-month delay, but once again, it
failed to implement the plan. Most recently, the air carrier has promised to
take off in 2011.

As such, three years after getting the license , the first private airline still
can only fly… on paper. VietJet has decided to sell 30 percent of its stakes to
Air Asia to operate under the name of VietJet AirAsia.

Facing the same fate, Trai Thien Airline, which obtained the license in October
2009, may not be able to take off, as its staff accuse the air carrier of
refusing to pay salaries, while key staff have left for other jobs

Indochina Airline is the name which was mentioned in most of discussions about
the airlines. Taking off on November 25, 2008, the airline then had to stop
operation just only one year and it is now awaiting the official registration
for bankruptcy.

In 2010, people once put high hope on the rise of private airlines, when Air
Mekong announced its flight plan in October. However, on November 3, the air
carrier had to cancel the flights because there were only 10 passengers.

An aviation expert said that three most important factors for an airline are the
qualified staff, financial capability and aviation experience.

It is now not easy to find the staff with experience and knowledge about
aviation business in Vietnam. Meanwhile, only Vietnam Airlines, the national air
flag carrier, has advantages in its human resources.

Regarding the financial capability, the initial chartered capital of every
private airline is about 500-600 billion dong. Meanwhile, private airlines need
huge capital to pay for fuel, chartered aircrafts and pilots

“All three factors are lacking at private airlines, which is a big problem.
Airlines need to have big financial capability in order to overcome difficulties
in the first 2-3 years of operation,” the expert said.

Meanwhile, airlines also need experience to set suitable business strategies.
Jetstar Pacific, for example, has decided to turn into a budget airline in order
to compete with the giant Vietnam Airlines, which has the big advantages of a
state owned enterprise.

The expert related that the airlines in Cambodia could only fly for a short time
before going bankrupt, or went bankrupt before taking off. Indonesia has tens of
airlines established every year. Of these airlines, 50 percent have never taken
off, while the majority of others do not operate effectively.

A representative from the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has revealed that
from 2012 to 2015, the agency will grant licenses to two air carriers which
develop domestic and international air routes, one airline specializing in carry
cargo, and two general airlines.

Source: VnExpress