The order includes the purchase of 92 A320 Family aircraft and lease of 8 more from third party lessors.—Photo airbus.com

PARIS (Biz Hub) —VietJetAir has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the world's leading aircraft manufacturer Airbus for an order of 100 aircraft of different types.

The signing ceremony took place on Thursday at Montignon Castle in Paris and was witnessed by French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung.

The order includes the purchase of 92 A320 family aircraft and the lease of eight more from third party lessors. According to the list price of Airbus, the order is valued at nearly US$8.6 billion.

The order is aimed to meet VietJetAir's demand for the most modern fleet in the region and to become a multi-national airline. It will also consolidate Airbus' position in the Asia-Pacific region, which is the fastest growing aviation market in the world.

The signing ceremony takes place on Thursday at Montignon Castle in Paris and is witnessed by French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault (right, second row) and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung (left, second row).—VNS Photo

"We are pleased with our decision and the outcome of negotiations between VietJetAir and Airbus. We are confident that VietJetAir passengers will be satisfied with the most modern and family-friendly aircraft that we have selected," said Luu Duc Khanh, managing director of VietJetAir, Viet Nam's first private and low-cost carrier.

The MoU represents the strategic and comprehensive co-operation relations between Viet Nam and France during the Vietnamese prime minister's visit to France at a time the two nations are celebrating 40 years of diplomatic ties.

The 100 planes will be delivered between 2014 and 2022, with the first batch scheduled to arrive by the last quarter of next year. — VNS