Hanoi, October 21 - Vietnam's budget airline industry faces a pivotal shift as Vietjet Air, the nation's pioneering low-cost carrier, quietly terminates its lease on two Chinese-manufactured COMAC C909 regional jets, effective October 18, 2025, according to industry sources familiar with the decision. This move marks the end of a brief but symbolically charged experiment in Sino-Vietnamese aviation collaboration, one that began amid heightened diplomatic overtures earlier this year. The C909 aircraft, also known as the ARJ21-700, were wet-leased from China's Chengdu Airlines for a six-month trial period, representing the first deployment of Chinese-built commercial planes on Vietnamese domestic routes. Operating out of key hubs like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to the remote Con Dao Islands, a popular eco-tourism destination with a runway too short for larger jets, these 90-seat twin-engine regional airliners ferried thousands of passengers during peak travel seasons, blending efficiency with the allure of affordable air travel in Southeast Asia's booming aviation market. Sources emphasize that the decision to cease operations stems not from any technical shortcomings but from pragmatic economic and regulatory pressures, underscoring the challenges of integrating foreign aircraft into Vietnam's rapidly expanding low-cost carrier ecosystem. Vietjet, renowned for its aggressive expansion strategy and fleet dominated by over 100 Airbus A320-family jets, had positioned this lease as a temporary boost to capacity amid global supply chain disruptions affecting Western manufacturers. Yet, as the contract expired without renewal, questions arise about the future trajectory of Chinese aircraft in Vietnam's skies, where budget airlines like Vietjet continue to drive tourism and economic connectivity while navigating geopolitical undercurrents.
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The introduction of the COMAC C909 in April 2025 was no ordinary fleet addition; it arrived less than a week after Chinese President Xi Jinping's high-profile visit to Hanoi, serving as a tangible emblem of deepening bilateral ties between Vietnam and its northern neighbor. Amid a flurry of trade agreements and infrastructure pledges, the jets' debut flights, four daily round-trips each from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Con Dao, signaled Vietnam's openness to diversifying its aviation partnerships beyond the traditional Airbus-Boeing duopoly. For COMAC, the state-backed Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, this Southeast Asian foothold was a hard-won milestone in its quest for global relevance. The C909, with its rugged design optimized for hot-and-high operations and short runways, had previously gained traction in Indonesia via TransNusa and in Laos with Lao Airlines, accumulating over 250,000 passengers across 15 regional routes. In Vietnam, the aircraft performed flawlessly, logging incident-free hours under the stewardship of Chengdu Airlines' provided crew, maintenance, and operational support. Passengers aboard these flights, often en route to Con Dao's pristine beaches and World War II-era prisons turned heritage sites, experienced a seamless blend of modern comfort and reliability, with the jets' all-economy configuration catering perfectly to Vietjet's no-frills ethos. This trial not only alleviated short-term capacity strains, exacerbated by post-pandemic travel surges and delays in Boeing 737 MAX deliveries, but also highlighted the C909's potential as a cost-competitive alternative for emerging markets, where regional connectivity is key to unlocking tourism revenue and fostering intra-Asian trade.
Despite the smooth execution, the lease's abrupt conclusion exposes the harsh realities of operational economics in Vietnam's competitive low-cost carrier landscape. Insiders point to elevated costs associated with foreign-sourced crew and specialized maintenance as primary culprits, compounded by stringent Vietnamese aviation regulations that limit the use of non-domestically certified personnel and services. Under the wet-lease arrangement, Chengdu Airlines handled everything from pilots to safety protocols, but these dependencies inflated expenses beyond what Vietjet could sustain long-term, especially as fuel prices fluctuate and passenger yields remain tight in the budget segment. Regulatory hurdles, including the need for ongoing compliance with Vietnam's Civil Aviation Authority validations for Chinese type certificates, further eroded the arrangement's viability. Notably, sources clarify that the C909 jets encountered zero mechanical or performance issues during their tenure, a testament to COMAC's maturing engineering prowess since the model's 2016 entry into service. For Vietjet, which has carved a niche as Vietnam's go-to airline for affordable flights to over 50 destinations across 14 countries, this episode underscores a strategic pivot back to its core strengths: a streamlined Airbus-centric fleet augmented by forthcoming Boeing orders. The carrier's refusal to comment publicly, coupled with COMAC's silence on the matter, leaves room for speculation about potential hybrid leasing models down the line, perhaps involving local crew training to mitigate costs. In the interim, this development tempers the optimism surrounding Chinese aviation exports in Southeast Asia, where geopolitical sensitivities and economic pragmatism often collide.
As Vietjet refocuses on its established Western suppliers, the broader implications for Vietnam's aviation sector ripple outward, influencing everything from regional tourism recovery to the global race for aircraft market share. The low-cost carrier model, epitomized by Vietjet's meteoric rise since 2011, has democratized air travel in Vietnam, propelling passenger numbers to record highs and positioning the country as a vital hub in Asia-Pacific connectivity. Yet, this COMAC interlude reveals the delicate balance budget airlines must strike between innovation and fiscal discipline, particularly in a market where domestic routes like those to Con Dao generate outsized tourism dollars, over $100 million annually from island visitors alone. For COMAC, the Vietnamese withdrawal is a setback in its aggressive push to rival established players, but it also spotlights opportunities for refinement: addressing supply chain localization and regulatory adaptability could pave the way for renewed interest from carriers in Indonesia, Cambodia, and Brunei, where C909 orders linger on the horizon. Vietnam's aviation authorities, meanwhile, may revisit certification pathways to encourage diverse fleet options, bolstering resilience against future disruptions. Ultimately, Vietjet's decision to end COMAC operations signals not a rejection of Chinese innovation but a recalibration toward sustainable growth. In an era where affordable flights fuel Vietnam's economic engine, projected to see 110 million passengers by 2030, this episode serves as a cautionary tale and a catalyst, reminding stakeholders that true breakthroughs in budget airline expansion demand harmony between ambition, affordability, and adaptability. As the skies over Con Dao clear of C909 contrails, eyes turn to what hybrid horizons might emerge next in this dynamic corner of global aviation.
