vietnam airlines 10 juil 2

saigon times weekly

A Lesson on Business Strategy
The civil aviation market in Vietnam has been on a roll since early this year, posting positive growth, according to a source from Vietnam Airlines. Up to the end of May, Vietnam Airlines had transported 1,657,000 passengers and 236,000 tons of cargo, reaching a 17% growth year-on-year.
The domestic passengers amounted to 947,000, a 20% rise, making up a 79% seat occupancy rate. Accounting for 40% of the clientele, its international travelers were 710,000, posting a 19% year-on-year jump and a 70% occupancy rate.
Nguyen Chan, Vietnam Airlines officer in charge of press relations, said his company has decided to revise its initial development growth from 8% to 15% backed by a better-than-expected market. That translates into 3.4 million passengers to be transported by the airline.
Three issues may emerge given Vietnam Airlines' unexpected growth in the backdrop of a faltering world aviation market, said an official with the national flag carrier.
Firstly, the majority of Vietnam Airlines' passengers are tourists. The passenger profile proves that the international community has considered Vietnam a safe tourist destination after a series of problems around the world. This was further supported by an evaluation of Vietnam as a safe place by international organizations.
Secondly, high security and efforts by the Government to improve the investment climate have made Vietnam attractive not only to tourists but also investors who come to Vietnam to explore business opportunities.
Thirdly, supported by the above favorable conditions, the aviation and tourism industries have enhanced Vietnam's image and investment promotion, as well as the quality of tourist products and aviation services. Typical of these activities are joint attempts by aviation and tourism authorities to organize significant campaigns at home and abroad such as Festival Hue 2002 and the Southern Land Gathering.
The aviation-tourism link, said the official, provides experience with which the aviation industry builds its business strategy. "Stable and sustainable development" is a new motto adopted by the aviation industry. From this motto, a lesson can be drawn: how to best forecast the market demand to have appropriate business plans. Previously, the airline industry suffered from the fact that enormous funding was invested in works that underperformed when the market turned sour.
The aviation industry has worked out a feasible business plan for the future. From now to 2005, annual growth rate of the industry is expected to be 15%. The rate will be 9% during 2006-2010, according to forecasts