Vietnamese carrier Bamboo Airways operated the first flight connecting HCM City and Melbourne in Australia on February 19-20.

According to the airline's Deputy General Director Truong Phuong Thanh, this is a new milestone in its roadmap to exploit Viet Nam-Australia direct air routes.

Along with the HCM City-Melbourne route, the airline has planned to open additional routes linking major cities of Viet Nam and Australia, he said.

The route helps shorten the travel time between the two cities to about eight hours, saving eight hours compared to transit flights.

Bamboo Airlines uses the 787-9 Dreamliner for flights on this route.

Earlier in December, Bamboo Airways announced the launch of the Viet Nam-Australia direct air route and signed agreements with Melbourne airport and Victoria State for the operation of the route.

Australia is a big tourism market of Viet Nam with more than 383,000 Australians visiting Viet Nam in 2019. Meanwhile, more than 300,000 Vietnamese students are studying in the country.

According to a representative of Bamboo Airways, the airline plans to expand its international network to nearly 40 routes in 2022, including the Ha Noi-Narita (Japan), Ha Noi-Taipei (Taiwan, China) and Ha Noi-Incheon (the Republic of Korea); while the Ha Noi-Frankfurt (Germany) and Ha Noi-London (the UK) routes are scheduled to be launched in March. — VNS