Airbus Updates No.4519

1st Airbus A321NEO painted for Sun PhuQuoc Airways

On 13 June 2025, Scramble reported about a new Vietnamese start-up called Sun PhuQuoc Airways. Now, we can show you the first painted aircraft for the airline, which was rolled-out of the paintshop on 13 July 2025 at Shannon.

The aircraft is Airbus A321-211 2-FWCA (8577). It's owned by leasing company FitzWalter Aviation and was previously in use with VietJetAir as VN-A627 between 2018 and 2022. It has been parked at Shannon since October last year. It's currently unknown which Vietnamese-registration it will get.

A second A321 is also alreadt in the paintshop at Shannon. This is 2-FWCB (8592), which also flew with VietJetAir before but as VN-A628. It has also been parked at Shannon since October last year.

Photo by Malcolm Nason.

Airbus Updates No.4489

 VietjetAir doubles Airbus A330neo-order

During the French President's state visit to Vietnam, Airbus was able to sign a new contract with VietjetAir. In the agreement, the airline is doubling its order for A330-900s, taking it from 20 to 40. No delivery timeline has been communicated. The airline announced its first order for the A330-900 during the Singapore Air Show in February 2024.

According to Airbus' press-release, the VietjetAir is planning to utilise its additional widebodies to increase capacity on existing routes but also launch new long-haul flights between Vietnam and Europe.

VietjetAir is Vietnam's largest private carrier and it currently operates a fleet of 29 A320s, 42 A321-200s, 36 A321neos, and seven A330-300s. Next to its order of 40 A330-900s, the airline holds open orders for 96 A320neo-family aircraft as well as 200 B737MAXs with Boeing.

It's part of the VietjetAir Group, which next to the carrier in Vietnam, also consists of Thai VietjetAir, and its recently launched VietjetAir Qazaqstan.

Airbus Updates No. 4204

 

VietJetAir inducts wet-leased A320s for Lunar New Year

VietJetAir (VJ, Hanoi Noi Bai International) has taken delivery of four A320-200s to help meet passenger demand over the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday. The aircraft will be operated on an ACMI basis by Freebird Airlines (FH, Istanbul Airport).

ch-aviation research has identified the aircraft as:

• TC-FBV (msn 4658), which ferried into Ho Chi Minh City from Delhi International on December 25, 2023, and started a full roster of revenue flights on December 27;
• TC-FHK (msn 4102), which ferried into Ho Chi Minh City from Delhi on December 24, and started flying for VietJet on December 26;
• TC-FHL (msn 4154), which ferried into Ho Chi Minh City from Delhi on December 25, and began flights with VietJet on December 26; and
• TC-FHP (msn 5906), which ferried into Ho Chi Minh City from Delhi on January 8, 2024, and commenced revenue operations for VietJet the following day.

In a statement, the LCC said the extra aircraft will enhance capacity during Viet Nam's biggest holiday. The statement cites Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) statistics as saying that Vietnamese airlines will operate approximately 33,800 flights between January 24 and February 25, the peak travel period of the 2024 Lunar New Year. The figure represents a 14% increase compared to the same period last year and a 21% rise compared to the current regular flight schedule.

Airbus Updates No.2313

VietJetAir orders twenty A321neo(XLR)s

Illustration of VietJetAir Airbus A321-200NXLR © Airbus

02.11.2019 - 02:44 UTC

VietJetAir (VJ, Hanoi) has placed a firm order for fifteen A321neo(XLR)s with Airbus (AIB, Toulouse Blagnac). According to the European manufacturer, the Vietnamese LCC has also converted five A321neo order slots to the ultra-longhaul variant.

VietJetAir will be among the first airlines to receive the A321neo(XLR) whose addition will allow the carrier to open up longer-range routes across Asia, as well as to destinations as far afield as Australia and Russia.

As of September 30, VietJetAir had 111 A321neo on order from Airbus alongside 200 B737-8-200s on order from Boeing (BOE, Chicago O'Hare). It currently operates twenty-five A320-200s, thirty-three A321ceo, eleven A321neo, and one A321neo(LR) on scheduled flights spanning Vietnam as well as South Korea, Singapore, China, Taiwan, Japan, Cambodia, Myanmar, India, and Indonesia.

Airbus Updates No.2305

VietJetAir to lease six A320 Family jets from Avion Express

Avion Express Airbus A320-200 © Avion Express

25.10.2019 - 02:32 UTC

VietJetAir (VJ, Hanoi) will wet-lease three A320-200s and three A321-200s from Avion Express (X9, Vilnius) during the Winter 2019/20 season, the Lithuanian ACMI/charter specialist said in a press release.

"Avion Express is constantly working on expanding its client base and has recently signed an ACMI contract with VietJetAir, an international low-cost airline from Vietnam. According to the wet-lease agreement, six aircraft - three Airbus A320 and three Airbus A321 - will be flying for the Vietnamese carrier until the end of February 2020. Four of the aircraft will already start operations in Vietnam in November," it said.

According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, Avion Express currently operates fourteen A320-200s and seven A321-200s. Ten A320s are wet-leased to SunExpress (XQ, Antalya), one to United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (Brindisi), two have been inactive since ACMI customer Thomas Cook Airlines UK (MT, Manchester Int'l) collapsed, and one was ferried to Amman Queen Alia on October 23. Two A321s are wet-leased to Onur Air (8Q, Istanbul New) and of the remaining five, which used to be wet-leased to Thomas Cook UK, four are inactive and one is scheduled to start operating for Condor (DE, Frankfurt Int'l) shortly.

Subsidiary Avion Express Malta (MLH, Malta Int'l) operates an A320 for Norwegian (DY, Oslo Gardermoen).

For its part, VietJetAir operates an in-house fleet of twenty-two A320-200s, thirty-three A321-200s, and twelve A321-200neo. It also wet-leases three A320s from FlyOne (5F, Chisinau).

Airbus Updates No.1980

VietJetAir firms up MOU for fifty A321neo

VietJetAir Airbus A321-200N © VietJetAir

02.11.2018 - 11:24 UTC

VietJetAir (VJ, Hanoi) has finalized a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Airbus for fifty additional A321neo.

The deal, which was announced during the 2018 Farnborough Air Show, was signed during French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe's visit to Hanoi on Friday, November 2.

The Vietnamese LCC has existing orders for seventy-three A321neo of which three have thus far been delivered. As such, the new-order aircraft will deliver from 2020 onwards.

VietJetAir operates twenty-three A320ceo and twenty-nine A321ceo.

Airbus Updates No.1358

VietJetAir orders six additional A321ceo

More A321s to join the all-Airbus fleet of fast-growing Vietnamese carrier

17 JUNE 2015 PRESS RELEASE

Vietnamese carrier VietJetAir has placed a firm order with Airbus for the purchase of six additional A321s. The order was signed today at the  Paris Air Show by VietJetAir President and CEO, Madam Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, and Airbus President and CEO, Fabrice Brégier. 

“The A320 Family has proven to be extremely efficient in service with VietJetAir”, said Madam Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, VietJetAir President and CEO. “Since we took delivery of our first A321 in March this year we have benefitted strongly from the additional capacity offered by the aircraft and its low operating costs. We are therefore placing this additional order for the A321 to meet demand on some of our most popular routes.”

“We are pleased to see VietJetAir renewing its confidence in Airbus by enlarging their A320 Family fleet”, said Fabrice Brégier, Airbus President and CEO. “The A320 Family offers the lowest operating costs in the single aisle market and this latest order from VietJetAir further confirms the growing popularity of the A321 as the largest member of the product line.”

VietJetAir first took to the skies at the end of 2011 and now operates a fleet of 25 A320 Family aircraft on a network covering Vietnam and a growing number of destinations across Asia. Following today’s announcement, the carrier has ordered a total of 69 aircraft from Airbus, including this order, and also holds purchase rights for another 30 aircraft.

The A321 is the largest member of the best-selling single aisle A320 Family. To date, the A320 Family has won more than 11,700 orders and over 6,500 aircraft delivered to more than 300 operators worldwide. With one aircraft in four sizes (A318, A319, A320 & A321), the A320 Family, seating from 100 to 240 passengers, seamlessly covers the entire single-aisle segment from low to high-density domestic to longer range routes.

Airbus Updates No.1308

Airbus celebrates delivery of its 9,000th aircraft

A321 for fast-growing Vietnamese carrier VietJetAir

23 MARCH 2015 PRESS RELEASE

Airbus has celebrated the delivery of its 9000th aircraft at a ceremony in Hamburg, Germany on 20th March 2015. The aircraft is the first A321 to be delivered to Vietnamese carrier VietJetAir and will join the carrier’s all-Airbus A320 Family fleet flying on its fast-growing Asia-Pacific network. 

“The delivery of our 9000th aircraft comes as we enjoy ongoing strong demand for aircraft across our product line,” said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers. “The range of aircraft we offer today is unrivalled, meeting every airline requirement from 100 to over 500 seats with maximum efficiency, uncompromised comfort and broad customer appeal.”

“We are especially pleased to be delivering today’s aircraft to VietJetAir, which is a rising star in the fast-growing Asian region. With the A321, VietJetAir will be able to increase capacity on its most popular routes while benefiting from the lowest operating costs of any single aisle aircraft.”

“We are excited to be adding the A321 to our fleet today as we continue to develop our innovative value-based model in Asia-Pacific,” said Mr. Luu Duc Khanh, Managing Director of VietJetAir. “Based on our proven experience, we are confident that our decision to operate an all Airbus fleet will bring us unbeatable economies of scale while offering our passengers a comfortable travel experience. It will be a great honour for us to welcome the 9000th Airbus aircraft to its new home in sunny Vietnam.”

VietJetAir first took to the skies at the end of 2011 and now operates a fleet of 22 A320 Family aircraft on a network covering Vietnam and a growing number of destinations across Asia. The A321 delivered today is the first of seven ordered by the airline as part of a major aircraft acquisition plan for up to 100 A320 Family aircraft announced in early 2014.

Since delivering its first A300 in 1974, Airbus has developed the world’s most modern and comprehensive product line. Today this includes the market-leading single aisle A320 Family and the industry’s most extensive Widebody Family, comprising the super-efficient A330, the all-new A350 XWB and the world’s largest aircraft, the flagship double deck A380.

The 9000th delivery comes less than two years after Airbus reached its last milestone of 8000 aircraft-delivered in August 2013.  Over the last 10 years, Airbus has doubled its deliveries to reach over 600 aircraft a year today – a figure that is set to rise further as the demand grows.

Airbus Updates No.1229

VietJetAir’s first A320 on order from Airbus completes first flight

3 NOVEMBER 2014 PRESS RELEASE

VietJetAir’s first A320 on order from Airbus has reached a new production milestone, with the aircraft having successfully performed its first flight in Toulouse, France. Appearing in its colourful livery, the aircraft now enters the final acceptance phase prior to delivery to VietJetAir by the end of 2014.

This A320 is the first of up to 100 of the best-selling single aisle aircraft that will be acquired by the airline under a deal finalised in February this year. The acquisition plan covers firm orders with Airbus for 63 aircraft, plus 30 purchase rights. In addition the airline will lease seven more aircraft from third party lessors.

The aircraft will join an existing fleet of 16 leased A320s at the fast-growing carrier and will be operated on the airline’s expanding network of domestic and regional services.

Airbus Updates No.1211

VietJetAir’s first A320 on order from Airbus enters final assembly

13 OCTOBER 2014 PRESS RELEASE

Final assembly of VietJetAir’s first A320 on order from Airbus is now underway in Toulouse, France. This is the first of up to 100 of the best-selling single aisle aircraft that will be acquired by the airline under a deal finalised in February this year. 

The acquisition plan covers firm orders with Airbus for 63 aircraft, plus 30 purchase rights. In addition the airline will lease seven more aircraft from third party lessors.

VietJetAir will start taking delivery of its new A320 Family fleet in Q4 of this year. The aircraft will join an existing fleet of 15 leased A320s at the fast-growing low cost carrier and will be operated on the airline’s expanding network of domestic and regional services.