Vietnam’s airlines have lost about 10 trillion dong, or $430 million, in revenue since the country cut air links with China, the government said on Wednesday.
The cause is a ban on all flights to and from China. Vietnam declared a public health emergency over the coronavirus epidemic on Feb. 1 and shut those routes the same day. In China, more than 1,000 people had died from the virus by then.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) said the ban would affect about 400,000 passengers a month. Its figures also showed international traffic on all routes down 14.1% in the first week of February compared with a year earlier.
The routes were not minor ones. Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Aviation and Jetstar Pacific Airlines operate commercial flights on 72 routes between the two countries. Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment, Reuters reported.
No restart date exists. “The flights (to and from China) can only be resumed under the approval from the Prime Minister,” CAAV Director Dinh Viet Thang said in the authority’s statement.
Inside Vietnam, the health ministry confirmed another case of the new coronavirus on Tuesday, taking the national total to 15. The $430 million figure was converted at $1 = 23,224 dong.
Sources
- Vietnamese Airlines Lose $430 Million in Revenue Due to Virus | ClaimHelp – Was your flight delayed or cancelled?
- Coronavirus costs Vietnamese airlines $430 mln in lost revenue
