The national flag carrier Viet Nam Airlines on Tuesday received foreign air operation certificate issued by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
With the certificate, Viet Nam Airlines becomes the first Vietnamese airline to operate direct flights to the U.S.
The first direct flight is scheduled to depart from Ho Chi Minh City in the evening of November 28 and arrive in San Francisco 13 hours and 50 minutes later, said Viet Nam Airline CEO Le Hong Ha.
The return flight will leave San Francisco on the evening of November 29 and arrive in Ho Chi Minh City on December 1, with the flight time of 16 hours and 40 minutes.
From December this year, there will be two flights per week and the frequency could be increased to seven when the COVID-19 pandemic is put under control and the Vietnamese Government allows resumption of regular international air routes.
The wide-body aircraft Boeing 787-9 and Airbus A350 will be used for the direct flights.
In November last year, Bamboo Airways was licensed by the U.S. Department of Transportation to carry passengers and cargoes between Viet Nam and the U.S.
The airline is allowed to use wide-body Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner to fly directly from Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City to international airports in the U.S., such as those in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The opening of the Viet Nam-U.S. direct routes are expected to tighten comprehensive ties between the two countries.
Viet Nam and the U.S. signed an air transport agreement in 2003 that allows airlines to operate direct flights between the two countries.
Last year, the national carrier, Viet Nam Airlines, got license to operate flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Ha Noi and the U.S. cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco (California); New York (New York), Seattle (Washington) and Dallas - Fort Worth (Texas)./.
