Hai Au Aviation Joint Stock Company has leased a seaplane to an Indonesian partner due to problems with obtaining licenses to conduct flights to a number of destinations in the country.

Hai Au Aviation Joint Stock Company leases a seaplane to an Indonesian partner.

Luong Hoai Nam, general director of Hai Au Aviation, confirmed that the seaplane left for Indonesia last Friday.

Nam told the Daily that as it was time consuming for the carrier to get approval for flights between HCMC and Can Tho City and other routes, the company had to lease one of its grounded two planes to cut losses. The leasing period will depend on the need of its partner.

The private airline has applied to offer seaplane tours to more destinations in Vietnam including Quang Ninh, Binh Thuan, Khanh Hoa, Can Tho, An Giang, Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa and Ba Ria-Vung Tau, but only got licenses for Hanoi-Halong (Quang Ninh) and HCMC-Mui Ne (Binh Thuan) services.

Hai Au launched its seaplane tours last September. Its seaplane can carry a dozen people at a time and has large windows allowing passengers to enjoy scenes along the journey and take photos at altitudes of 500 to 3,000 meters. The aircraft can fly at a speed of about 300 kilometers per hour and take off and land either on a normal airport or on water.

Hai Au is the first carrier in Vietnam to provide transport services using seaplanes, which are popular in other countries. With many rivers and a long beautiful coastline, the country is touted as a favorable country for seaplane service development.