Vietnam Airlines is in talks with Airbus and Embraer regarding an order for 20 regional jets, Bloomberg revealed.
The discussions involve the A220 and its rival, the E2, which have capacity for up to 150 passengers, but are usually configured with around 130 to 140 seats.
This is a market segment where the Hanoi-based state carrier does not operate today.
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Vietnam Airlines’ fleet is made up of 63 A320 family jets and 29 widebodies, including A350 and Boeing 787 models.
But the airline made a recent gesture towards Boeing by ordering 50 737 MAX last year.
Vietnamese Prime Minister visited Embraer
Embraer has been courting Vietnam Airlines for some time. In September 2023, the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, was at the Brazilian manufacturer’s headquarters where he visited an E2 aircraft.
At the time, Minh Chinh requested that Embraer invest in the modernization of aviation infrastructure in the country, but nothing was disclosed about possible interest from the state airline.
Until recently, E-Jets flew in the Southeast Asian country with Bamboo Airways, but the company removed them from service amid a financial crisis.
For Airbus, winning a customer in the region is also very important as the A220 has a small presence in Asia-Pacific.
In addition to Korean Air, one of the aircraft’s first customers, and Qantas, only the small Air Niugini, from Papua New Guinea, and Air Vanuatu have chosen the A220 for their fleets.
