Cessna Grand Caravan EX planes manufactured by the US's Cessna company. Hai Au Airlines will use the two seaplanes for Ha Noi-Ha Long tourism route from September. — Photo cessna.com

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Hai Au Airline will hand over two seaplanes to Wipaire Inc in the United States to install floats into them, according to a press release on June 11.

The two Cessna Grand Caravan EX seaplanes are expected to arrive at the Noi Bai International Airport in August and operate on Ha Noi–Ha Long tourism route from September.

Luong Hoai Nam, deputy general director of Thien Minh Group, stated that seaplanes took only 30 minutes from Ha Noi to Ha Long Bay instead of three or four hours by bus. "Customers can view the sea from a height of 150–3,000 metres. We believe this will be a new experience for tourists, contributing to popularising and developing Vietnamese tourism in the coming time," he noted.

According to Nam, with the new air route, the group has carried out its business development plan of creating full-package services in the travel and hospitality industry.

The private Hai Au Airline of Thien Minh Group will provide high-class tourism services to customers, including sightseeing tours and flight rentals for individuals and organisations. After Ha Noi–Ha Long route, the airline will operate air routes between HCM City and tourism destinations in Khanh Hoa, Binh Thuan, Can Tho and An Giang, as well as Con Dao and Phu Quoc islands.

The seaplanes can accommodate a maximum of 12 passengers with a speed of approximately 300 kilometres per hour. The seaplanes can take off from and land on both land and water.

Hai Au is the sixth private airline in Viet Nam, founded by Thien Minh Group with the largest share and Focus Travel Group. The airline mainly provides sightseeing tours on Ha Long Bay, air taxi and specific services ordered by customers. — VNS