National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines plans to buy 50 narrow-body Boeing 737 Max aircraft in a deal worth 10 billion with the US group Boeing.

Steve Biegun, senior vice president of Global Public Policy at Boeing, unveiled the firm’s long-term investment plan during his May 26 meeting with Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien in Detroit, USA.

The aviation giant Boeing inaugurated its new permanent office in Hanoi on May 12.

Boeing, the world’s leading aerospace company based in the US, are accelerating cooperation with Vietnamese suppliers and universities to provide a foundation for long-term industrial growth.

The value of products made in Vietnam for Boeing over the last few years was a relatively modest $200 million, Micheal Vu Nguyen, Boeing Country Director in Vietnam, said at a meeting between the Prime Minister and FIEs held several days ago.

According to a representative of Boeing Vietnam, the Southeast Asian market needs about 4,000 new aircraft, of which Vietnam is the country that needs the most aircraft.

Bamboo Airways on February 16 inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with SR Technics and an agreement with Boeing Digital Solutions, and discussed the purchase of the aerospace company’s new aircraft.

The Boeing Company has opened its new office in Vietnam’s capital of Hanoi, the first office of the U.S. plane manufacturer in Vietnam, reflecting the continued importance of the region to the company.

To cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, Boeing has sped up its ecoDemonstrator programme to support its partner airlines, including those in Vietnam.

The import staples include cow, wheat, fruit, corn, soy, and animal feed which will be purchased in the next two to three years.

The number of aircraft in Vietnam and Asia Pacific is expected to double in the next 20 years, increasing demand for aviation services.

Vietnam has witnessed strong growth in the aviation industry over the past five years, with the number of air passengers increasing threefold and its airline fleet doubling. 

A ladder car, while approaching a Boeing 787 aircraft operated by Vietnam Airlines, punctured the body of the plane on August 22, resulting in the cancelation of a flight from HCMC to Japan’s Osaka.

Vietnam has become increasingly appealing to global aerospace component manufacturers given the favorable internal and external conditions.

 Boeing is cutting its 737 Max production rate as the company works to return the plane to flight.

 As Boeing works to restore its troubled 737 Max fleet to service, it will continue building the planes. But it will temporarily stop delivering 737 Max jets to airlines as Boeing determines what caused two of those planes to crash

VietNamNet Bridge - Doors and flaps just account for 1-2 percent of total value of an aircraft. If Vietnam manufactures these items and joins the production chain, its earnings will be small. 

VietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam’s aviation manufacturing industry is pursuing niche markets by targeting the tourism sector, Nguyen Duc Cuong, chair of the Vietnam Aerospace Association (VASA), has said. 

 Boeing kicked off the first day of the Dubai Airshow by announcing the first big sales news of the five-day event.