In what the airline describes as an "unprecedented attractive promotion," VietJet is offering to carry passengers from Vietnam to Australia for free. There's no escaping taxes and charges, so these still need to be paid, but the ticket price remains at VND0.
Between February 14th and February 20th, which is the golden week according to VietJet, the airline has opened for sale hundreds of thousands of tickets from only VND0 for direct flights connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Melbourne. The promotion marks VietJet expanding its international network to reach all five continents this year.
The Australian link is coming in April
The direct flights to Melbourne commence on April 8th and operate on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, departing Ho Chi Minh City International (SGN) at 10:55 and landing at Melbourne International (MEL) at 22:35. The return flight operates from Melbourne on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday, departing at 00:30 and landing in Ho Chi Minh City at 06:30.
According to fleet data from ch-aviation.com, VietJet has 76 Airbus aircraft, including four widebody A330-300s which will likely be used on the Melbourne route. The four A330s range in age from seven to fourteen years and are configured in a two-class layout of 377 seats, including 12 in business class and 365 in economy.
The balance of the fleet is comprised of 72 Airbus A320-family narrowbodies, including A320s and A321s and A321neos. VietJet also has a relatively large order for 264 aircraft, split between 114 Airbus A321neos and 150 Boeing 737 MAXs, with 106 737 MAX 10s a favored choice. It also has Airbus 321 LR and XLRs on order, and with a network spanning five continents, it will be making good use of these longer-range variants on short to medium-haul routes.
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A ready market in Australia for VietJet
There are strong links between Vietnam and Australia, with large diasporas in all cities, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne. VietJet vice president Nguyen Thanh Son said that with its fleet of widebody aircraft, the airline is ready to expand its international network [to] restore trade and tourism.
"We will bring Australia closer to Vietnamese, and the demands for business investment, study abroad, and tourism in this country become easy and convenient, following Melbourne we will expand to the cities of Sydney, Brisbane, Darwin, and Adelaide this year.
"For the first time launching SkyBoss Business ticket class with luxurious services and deluxe one with many package incentives, we have received the passengers' love and support, which become the motivation for VietJet to develop sustainably, offering more and more flying opportunities across the five continents for Vietnamese."
In its announcement on Friday, VietJet listed four classes of tickets for the services to Melbourne:
- SkyBoss Business: experiencing the luxury lounge, private cabin, cocktail bar and flatbed seats, free up to 20 kg (44 lbs) of carry-on and 60 kgs (132 lbs) of checked baggage
- Deluxe: Including 40 kgs (88 lbs) of checked baggage, fresh and hot meals, free travel insurance and free change of flight itinerary
- Standard and Eco: ticket class with a super attractive price from only VND0 is a smart choice for all passengers
As with any offer, some terms and conditions apply, which are available on VietJet's website. Bookings are open now with a flight period of up to October 29th, 2023.
Does a free flight tempt you to take a VietJet trip to Australia? Let us know in the comments.