Vietnamese low-cost airline VietJet announced it had received its first wide-body Airbus A330 jet.
The Airbus A330-300 passenger plane, registered as VN-A811, arrived at Tan Son Nhat International Airport (SGN), Vietnam on December 25, 2021, marking the 10th anniversary of the first VietJet’s flights.
“We are delighted to mark our 10th anniversary with an A330 aircraft’s arrival, which will help VietJet grow significantly in operation capacity and international footprint expansion. Our fleet of A320 and A321 over the years has carried more than 100 million passengers on tens of thousands of friendly, safe, and affordable flights across Vietnam and Asia-Pacific region,” VietJet Managing Director Dinh Viet Phuong was quoted in the airline’s statement.
The 13-year-old aircraft, which was repainted in a soft and iridescent golden silk strip VietJet livery, was leased from Chinese lessor ICBC, the Planespotters.net data indicates.
According to VietJet, “the soft golden silk strip in the jet’s livery symbolizes a cultural quintessence of Vietnam” as well as depicts “a connection between the traditional and the modern between the East and West cultures,” written in the carrier’s statement. The plane, which used to serve AirAsia X’s flights between 2008 and 2021, is equipped with 12 business-seat and 365 economy-seat configurations and is able to serve medium-haul flights as well as direct long-range operations for up to 11,750 kilometers (around 7,301 miles).
“The A330 aircraft with a golden silk image is also a part of VietJet’s ongoing commitment to modernize the fleet and elevate services so that our customers can take farther flights more comfortably with the most competitive ticket fares ever,” Dinh Viet Phuong added.
According to its official website, besides the recently added A330 aircraft, VietJet operates an Airbus fleet of 65 jets, including 22 A320-200s, nine A321neos, and 34 A321-200 aircraft. The company is set to lease two more A330-300s shortly.