Hanoi (VNA) - National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines welcomed the biggest aircraft in Vietnam, a Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner delivered by Boeing via lease from Air Lease Corporation, at Noi Bai international airport on August 16.
This is the first of the eight of this kind to be gradually handed over to Vietnam Airlines from now to the end of 2020.
The event marks a new step of Vietnam Airlines in its strategy to develop a modern wide-body fleet.
The firm plans to firstly put the aircraft coded VN-A879 into service in the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City air route.
As the largest member of the 787 family, Boeing 787-10 is the most modern and largest aircraft used in Vietnam at present. With a length of more than 68m, including 24 business-class seats and 343 economy-class seats, Boeing 787-10 carries 15 percent more passengers and cargo than Boeing 787-9. The aircraft has an optimal operation cost per seat, helping create a competitive advantage for Vietnam Airlines.
Boeing 787-10 continues to inherit many outstanding advantages of Boeing 787-9 such as large space, comfortable seats, modern entertainment system, LED light, humidity air and pressure, creating a comfortable feeling for passengers. The new-generation aircraft is also extremely environmentally friendly thanks to the integration of advanced technology that helps reduce 25 percent of fuel per seat, and emissions compared to Boeing 787-9.
Vietnam Airlines is currently one of the five airlines in Asia that operate both the most modern aircraft Boeing 787-9 and Boeing 787-10.
Appreciating the operational efficiency of Boeing 787-10 and its ability to transport the large number of passengers, Nguyen Hong Linh, Vice General Director of Vietnam Airlines, said this super aircraft is the youngest member of Vietnam Airlines' new generation wide-body aircraft fleet, helping the firm better meet the constantly increasing travel demand on the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City route, and key international ones.
Boeing 787-10 will bring more modern and comfortable experiences to passengers, contributing to improving the quality of Vietnam Airlines’ services, Linh added.
Expressing the honour to cooperate with Vietnam Airlines, Ihssane Mounir, senior Vice President of Commercial Sales and Marketing of the Boeing Company, said Boeing 787 Dreamliner features outstanding fuel economy, high operation efficiency, environmental friendliness and modern convenience - the reasons why Boeing 787 is currently the best-selling 2-aisle airplane.
He said he belives that Boeing 787-10 aircraft will help Vietnam Airlines to improve the operation efficiency of its regional and international flight networks.
As planned, the first Boeing 787-10 aircraft will be put into service on domestic routes between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnam Airlines will be also the first in the world to operate Boeing 787-10 on the Vietnam - Republic of Korea route from September 2019.
Vietnam Airlines are operating over 95 air routes to 22 domestic destinations and 29 international destinations with a total of 400 flights per day.
The airline owns a young and modern fleet, and is the first in the world to simultaneously operate both new generation aircraft including Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A350. Vietnam Airlines is also the first member of the Skyteam airline alliance in Southeast Asia. In 2019, Vietnam Airlines was certified with a 4-star airline rating by prestigious international air transport rating organisation Skytrax for the fourth consecutive year.
Boeing is the world's largest firm in the field of aerospace, and it is also a leading manufacturer in the spheres of commercial aircraft, defense, space system and security. Boeing currently supports commercial organisations and governments in more than 150 countries. It has more than 150,000 employees working worldwide./.