The airline has invested in modernising its fleet in an attempt to offer passengers more choices in flight times. — VNS Photo

HA NOI (Biz Hub) – Domestic airlines do not lag behind international carriers in terms of being on time, industry insiders have said.

According to the Civil Aviation Administration of Viet Nam, the Vietnam Air Services Co (VASCO) posed the highest percentage of on-time flights with 96 per cent being on time during the past five months.

VietJetAir came next with 94 per cent of on-time flights, followed by the national carrier, Vietnam Airlines, with 91 per cent and Air Mekong, which halted operations in late February, with 84 per cent.

The percentage of on-time flights recorded by Vietnamese carriers was even higher than that of international carriers, said VietJetAir deputy general director Nguyen Duc Tam.

A recent US Department of Transportation report revealed that the five largest US airlines, Delta, US Airways, United, Southwest and American in May recorded on-time flight ratios of at 86.2 per cent, 82 per cent, 79.7 per cent, 79 per cent and 76.2 per cent, respectively.

"For VietJetAir, we are recording the high percentage of on-time flights while the percentage of flight cancellations has stayed at the lowest rate among domestic airlines," Tam said, adding that the airline saw only 1 per cent of its flights cancelled during the January-May period.

Meanwhile, Vietnam Airlines and Jestar Pacific saw 3 per cent and 5 per cent of flights cancellation, respectively.

"Flight delays or cancellations are undesirable, affecting both airlines and passengers," Tam said.

According to calculations, every minute a flight is delayed, the airline would incur a loss of US$100 (the damage calculated for A-320 aircraft). Thus the losses for domestic airlines would be substantial.

Now the country's fastest growing airline, Tam said VietJetAir is proud to offer valued customers high-quality flights with friendly services and maximum safety.

The airline has invested in modernising its fleet in an attempt to offer passengers more choices in flight times. Early last month, VietJetAir added two more brand-new Airbus A320-200 aircraft to its modern fleet as the airline aims to meet growing demand for the peak travel season.

"The new aircraft will not only serve demand for more flights but also help support a stable flight schedule. Now we can better manage periodical technical checks and maintenance without adjusting our flight schedule," said Desmond Lin, Business Development Director of VietJetAir.