It’s boom time

Vietnamese carriers back ambition with big deals

Amidst all the hoopla in Hanoi last month as US President Donald Trump continue his love affair with North Korea’s Kim Jong-un there was another more than happy figure. Boeing chief executive Kevin McAllister was thoroughly enjoying a quick visit to Vietnam to witness the signing of a few lucrative deals with the country’s burgeoning airlines.

China and India may grab many of the headlines when it comes to spectacular growth in air traffic but Vietnam isn’t far behind. The communist country’s aviation sector has boomed in recent years thanks to a rapidly expanding middle class with growing appetites – and budgets – for air travel. The bottom line, a precursor to the Trump-Kim talkfest at Hanoi’s historic and plush Metropole Hotel: Vietnamese carriers signed up for some A$29 billion in aviation deals with US companies, covering aircraft, engines and maintenance.