Hanoi, December 27th, 2015 – Today, at Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam Airlines held a ceremony to welcome the 160 millionth passenger in the 20 years of operation and the 17 millionth passenger in 2015. Minister of Transport Mr. Dinh La Thang and other leaders of the Ministry, Aviation Administration of Vietnam, Airport Corporation of Vietnam and Vietnam Airlines attended the ceremony. 
The 160,000,000th, the 159,999,999th and the 160,000,001th  are the three special passengers on flight No. VN417 from Incheon, the Republic of Korea to Hanoi, landing at Noi Bai Airport at 14.10 on December 27th, 2015. The 160 millionth passenger is Mr. Bhang Shang Chul of Korean nationality. The 159,999,999th passenger is Mr. Kim Jung Hui of Korean nationality and the 160,000,001th passenger is Mr. Duong Ngoc Tan of Vietnamese nationality.  
During this event, Vietnam Airlines also welcomed the 17 millionth passenger in 2015 on  flight No. VN240 from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi. The 17 millionth passenger is Mr. Vu Ngoc Truong of Vietnamese nationality. The 16,999,999th passenger is Ms. Nguyen Thu Huong of Vietnamese nationality and the 17,000,001th passenger is Mr. Fujiwara Takeshi of Japanese nationality.  
On the same day December 27th, 2015, flight No. VN240 marked a total number of 250,000 passengers travelling on the new generation aircraft Airbus A350-900 of  Vietnam Airlines in 2015. Since Airbus A350-900 and Boeing 787-9 were put in operation on July 2015, many travellers would like to change their itineries in order to exprience flying on the new aircraft. 
At the ceremony, Minister Đinh La Thăng said: Transporting more than 160 million passengers during the last 20 years of its operation and 17 million in 2015 alone, Vietnam Airlines have excellently fulfilled its role as a National airline. It has effectively bridged different regions in Vietnam and connected Vietnam with the whole world, turning air travel into the most convinient, the most popular and the safest mode of transportation among the people. I believe that Vietnam Airlines, based on a firm foundation and having gone through many challenges, will be able to achieve all the important set targets and become the pride of the transportation industry. Vietnam Airlines will give a strong testimony for the sound development directions and potentials of the country in the international community. 
In the period of 1995 – 2015, Vietnam Airlines have conducted 1.39 million international and domestic flights. All of them are absolutely safe, transporting 160 million passengers and growing by 11% per annum. In 2015 alone, it is estimated that Vietnam Airlines transported 17.4 million passengers and provided excellent air control services to more than 127.500 flights, a 3.5% increase from the plan. Vietnam Airlines have maintained very good air traffic flow, aviation security and safety. This year also witnessed a number of milestones in the corporation’s development, inluding the first year of Vietnam Airlines operating as a joint stock company, launching the two modern aircarfts, i.e. Boeing 787-9 and Airbus A350-900, refreshing its brand image and upgrading its service to 4-star rating. 
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For more information, please contact:
Mr. Lê Hoàng Dũng 
Vietnam Airlines Spokesperson
Address: No. 200 Nguyen Son, Long Bien, Ha Noi
Tel: 84.4.38732732 (máy lẻ 2518); 
Email: public-relations@vietnamairlines.com