The revenue and profit indicators of Vietnam Airlines Corporation showed growth as planned in 2017, the firm reported.

Vietnam Airlines and its members, including Jetstar Pacific and Vietnam Air Services Company (VASCO), earned a consolidated revenue of VND88.4 trillion (US$3.88 billion) and pre-tax profit of more than VND2.8 trillion, exceeding 72 per cent of its plan and up 8.3 per cent year on year, respectively.

Of this, parent company Vietnam Airlines earned an estimated revenue of VND66.2 trillion, more than 50 per cent of the target, and pre-tax profits of VND1.85 trillion, up by eight per cent compared to 2016, respectively.

More than VND1.9 trillion was sent for the State budget last year, doubling the figure of the previous year, the airlines said.

Last year, the corporation operated nearly 180,000 safe flights, transporting 26.5 million passengers, an increase of 6.7 per cent during the same period last year. Cargo shipments were estimated at 343,000 tonnes, up 19 per cent from 2016. The domestic market share reached an average of 60 per cent, while the international market share was 32.3 per cent.

The impressive growth of Vietnam Airlines is a result of the development of a modern fleet of aircraft and an extensive network of air routes as well as a firm effort to constantly improve the quality of services and promote bilateral and multilateral co-operation and trade.

In January 2017, Vietnam Airlines traded more than 1.2 billion shares, listed as HVN, on UpCOM, marking it a large-scale pubic company in the leading group of capitalisation value in the stock market. At the end of the year, HVN shares peaked at VND42,000 each, up 60 per cent from the initial price.

In the second quarter of 2018, Vietnam Airlines will list its shares on HCM Stock Exchange with a large trading scale. It will continue to issue additional shares to existing shareholders to increase charter capital and reduce the ownership of the State.

VN-German direct route open

Vietnam Airlines on Tuesday introduced Airbus A350 at the Frankfurt international airport to connect Germany and Viet Nam.

The carrier has increased the number of flights per week on this route from nine to 10. Vietnam Airlines is the only carrier operating direct flights between the two countries.

In 2017, some 200,000 Germans came to Viet Nam on Vietnam Airlines flights, 14 per cent higher than the previous year. — VNS