Hot: Vietjet to open routes to a slew of
European countries this year. According to Phuong Linh, Vietjet Air is planning to open routes to Europe this year, despite the ongoing conflict in the Middle East continuing to disrupt the global aviation industry. In parallel, Vietnam’s low-cost carrier is looking to cut costs by leasing aircraft produced in China. According to Vietjet board member Philipp Rosler, Prague (the capital of the Czech Republic) has appeared in Vietjet’s booking system, although the airline has not officially begun selling tickets. Germany, France and the United Kingdom are also in the expansion plan. Rosler said that in May Vietjet will announce the flight network as well as potential technical stops for European routes. He noted Vietjet will use Airbus aircraft for these routes to capture growing demand from the Vietnamese middle class and to attract European travelers to tropical destinations. Vietjet is diversifying its fleet with 134 Airbus aircraft and 1 Boeing aircraft. The airline has ordered around 600 new aircraft, including 199 from Boeing. Notably, Vietjet is expected to lease 10 regional jets of the COMAC C909 produced by Chinese manufacturer COMAC, though Rosler declined to disclose lease costs. The C909, with a capacity of about 100 passengers, will be deployed before the airline decides whether to switch to the larger COMAC C919. The C919 can fly directly to Europe, but it has not yet received certification to operate in Europe. “This aircraft family can lower costs and be more convenient for our customers,” Rosler said about the smaller model. “I believe leveraging every option available in the market is sensible.” In April, Vietjet reduced flights by 18% to save fuel, as the Middle East conflict pushed jet fuel prices higher and forced many airlines to detour to avoid risk zones. Currently Vietnam Airlines is the only domestic competitor on direct routes to Europe. Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific are taking advantage of gaps left by Middle Eastern carriers as they trim Asia–Europe routes, though air corridors are increasingly constrained by regional conflicts and Ukraine. Last year, Vietjet announced a sister airline, Vietjet Qazaqstan, aiming to connect Southeast Asia with Kazakhstan. When asked why Vietjet is expanding while many carriers are shrinking, Rosler said the company is looking 10 years ahead. He argued that strong demand comes from the Vietnamese community in Europe, along with robust growth in the domestic market. In 2025, Vietnam’s economy grew about 8%, with the population increasing by about 1 million to around 102 million. Official aviation data show Vietjet raised its share of passenger traffic in Vietnam to about 44% in 2024, up from around 30% in 2019, enabling it to catch up with or even surpass Vietnam Airlines at times. Source: Nikkei
