Vietnamese low-cost carrier VietJet Air will start its first operations to Australia with flights to Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport (MEL) from Ho Chi Minh’s Tan Son Nhat International Airport (SGN) starting April 2023.
The service will begin with three direct flights per week, and eventually increase to a daily service by December 2024.
VietJet joins Vietnam Airlines, Jetstar, and Vietnam’s newest carrier Bamboo Airlines in offering direct services between Melbourne and Ho Chi Minh.
The VietJet flights are expected to add more than 136,000 seats to Melbourne each year and generate around $97 million annually for the Victorian economy once fully operational.
As of 2021’s census, there are 334,781 Vietnamese-Australians in Australia, about 36% of which reside in Melbourne.
Flights depart from Melbourne every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 00:30 local time, and arrive in Ho Chi Minh City at 05:15 local time. Flight time is over eight hours.
On the return, flights depart Ho Chi Minh City at 09:50 local time every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, arriving into Melbourne at 22:35 local time.
VietJet will use its fleet of A330-300 for the route, and will feature the airline’s premium cabin called the “Skyboss Business”, which features leather seats that recline in an angled bed position.
VietJet Air is an international low-cost carrier in Vietnam and was granted license to operate in 2007.