On October 2, the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV) sent an official dispatch to the Hanoi People's Committee asking for opinions on the plan to operate regular domestic routes to and from Hanoi during the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the agency, the resolution of the cabinet meeting in September 2021 assigned the Ministry of Transport to assume the prime responsibility for coordinating with the Ministry of Health, and major cities that are key domestic and international traffic hubs such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Can Tho, andHai Phong to assess the situation of reopening arterial traffic routes, ensuring effective implementation of "dual goals" (epidemic prevention and economic development).

Following the direction of the Minister of Transport and the Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee, CAAV discussed with the Hanoi Department of Transport the reopening of passenger transport. CAAV sent the Hanoi People's Committee a plan on domestic air transport in phase 1, expected to be applied from October 5, 2021 with information on flight routes, operators, and frequency of flights to and from Noi Bai international airport, and it asked Hanoi People's Committee for comments.

According to this plan, from October 5 to 10, it will operate 91 round-trip flights per day on the route between Hanoi and 17 destinations including: Ho Chi Minh City, Kien Giang (Phu Quoc, Rach Gia), Nghe An, Quang Binh, Ba Ria - Vung Tau (Con Dao), Quang Nam, Can Tho, Binh Dinh, Phu Yen, Gia Lai, Thua Thien Hue, Lam Dong, Dien Bien, Da Nang, Khanh Hoa and Dak Lak.

These air routes will be operated by Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Bamboo Airways and Pacific Airlines. The route between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City will have the highest frequency of 28 round-trip flights per day.

According to CAAV, under the temporary guidance on organization of passenger transport activities issued by the Ministry of Transport, air passengers must meet the following requirements: comply with 5K rules; make medical declaration as prescribed; test for SARS-CoV-2 with negative results within previous 72 hours (from receipt of testing results) by RT-PCR method or rapid test. No testing is required for people who have received 1 dose of vaccine at least 3 weeks before, or people who have been fully vaccinated, or have recovered from COVID-19 within the last sixmonths.

In its document sent to the Hanoi People's Committee, CAAV stated that Noi Bai International Airport is a key traffic hub in the domestic and international air transport network, so the operation of regular domestic flights to and from this airport is important and essential.

Based on the direction of the Hanoi People's Committee on additional measures, if there are requirements on epidemic prevention and control, CAAV will strictly implement them.

Vu Diep

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