Jakarta (VNA) – The national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines condu♏cted 365 flights between Vietnam and Indonesia in 2015, carrying more than 100,000 passengers and over 1,000 tonnes of cargos.

The statistics were released at the firm’s customer conference in Jakarta, Indonesia, on December 16 which saw the participation of Indonesia aviation officials, and distributors, customers and partners of Vietnam Airlines in the host country. According to Nghiem Van Khanh, head of the firm’s branch in Indonesia, in 2015 the Vietnamese aviation sector faced a range of difficulties stemming from Indonesia’s low GDP growth rate and rupiah depreciation, which, he said, weakened Indonesia people’s purchasing power and outbound tourism demands. Against the backdrop, the firm coordinated with its distributors and partners as well as Indonesian authorities to swiftly launch marketing campaigns and build up a suitable ticket distribution system in the market, he said. Khanh added that Vietnam Airlines is currently operating one daily flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Jakarta, using Airbus A321. Since 2012, the national flag carrier has run more than 1,000 flights from Vietnam’s southern metropolis to the Indonesian capital city, contributing to boosting cooperation in economic, cultural and social fields between the two countries. In 2016, the branch in Indonesia plans to improve its service quality and expand its ticket distribution network in the country. The corporation will also launch more flights from Indonesia to Vietnam in order to meet the increasing travel demands of the two countries’ people, Khanh said, noting the plan matches the development course of two nations’ strategic partnership, especially in the context of to-be-formed ASEAN Community. Indonesia has become one of Vietnam’s 20 largest tourism markets with about 50,000 Vietnamese holiday-makers visiting the country each year. Around 80,000 Indonesian tourists also choose Vietnam as their holiday destination each year.-VNA