Plans by Vietnamese start-up Bamboo Airways to launch flights on 10 October appear to have fallen through, with online reports stating that the carrier has yet to obtain the necessary licences from Hanoi.
In a VnExpress report dated 9 October, a transport ministry official was quoted as saying that the "licensing procedures for the airline have not been completed."
The ministry was also said to have requested the country's prime minister, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, allow it to grant Bamboo an air transportation business licence in August, but had not received any replies from him or his office, the report adds.
Meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam's deputy director Vo Huy Chuong was quoted in a Reuters report as saying that the CAAV "do not see any problems with the company's application for the licence".
Although Bamboo will miss its 10 October launch date, other Vietnamese reports quoting the airline's chief executive Dang Tat Thang as saying that they are aiming for a year-end launch.
“Basically, all final preparations for the airlines’ first flight at the end of the fourth quarter have been completed,” says Thang to the Dan Viet newspaper, whose remarks were carried by Reuters.
Bamboo did not respond to FlightGlobal's request for comments.
Had Bamboo Airways obtained the necessary licences and approval to launch flights as intended, it would have been the fifth Vietnamese carrier to enter service, after Jetstar Pacific, Vietnam Airlines, VASCO, and VietJet Air.
Bamboo has said that it would operate leased aircraft for its first year of operations. The carrier also has letters of intent for 24 Airbus A321neos, and 20 Boeing 787-9ss.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
