Adelaide to Vietnam flights take off
The first flight of a new service between Adelaide and Vietnam took off this morning, with five return flights a week now scheduled between South Australia and Ho Chi Minh City.
The inaugural Vietjet flight left Adelaide Airport this morning.
The new service leaves Adelaide every weekday at 9:55am, flies to Perth and then on to Ho Chi Minh City.
Return flights leave Ho Chi Minh City on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, flying to Perth before arriving in Adelaide.
The return trip costs around $280 at the moment, and takes about 10 hours each way.
Vietjet said it was the first Vietnamese carrier to fly into South Australia. The Adelaide and Perth flights more than double the airline’s weekly Australian flights to 58.
Vietnam is South Australia’s 12th largest export destination, with exports to Vietnam having increased by 32 per cent in the year to September.
Adelaide Airport managing director Brenton Cox said ticket sales for the new route had been strong since it was announced in October.
“Vietnam has been a focus of ours for some time and we’re delighted that Vietjet has recognised the opportunity to add Adelaide to its network,” he said.
“We are confident the strong economic and tourism links between Vietnam and South Australia will translate into significant interest in these flights.”
Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison said the flights opened up “significant opportunities” for the state.
“Greater access to key tourism and trade markets in Asia is hugely valuable, with tourism in the Asian region currently worth $602 million to our state and exports to Vietnam now worth almost half a billion dollars a year,” she said.
