Air Costa signs MoU with VietJet on tapping biz opportunities

Regional carrier Air Costa today said it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Vietnamese largest budget airline VietJet to initiate discussions on exploring future business opportunities including a possible code-share arrangement with the latter.
The signing of MoU took place during the "India-Vietnam Trade & Investment forum", which was organised by the three prime industry bodies- CII, FICCI and ASSOCHAM- in New Delhi and it coincided with the ongoing visit of the Prime Minister of Vietnam Nguyen Tan Dung to India, Air Costa said in a release.
"The agreement targets exploring opportunities such as code sharing, partnership and financial collaboration," Air Costa chairman Lingamaneni Ramesh said.

VietJet flies between Vietnam's major cities -- Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Noi, Hai Phong, and Da Nang besides key Asian destinations such as Singapore, Bangkok, Seoul, and Busan.
Incidentally, Mumbai-headquartered private carrier Jet Airways is all set to become the first Indian carrier to provide a direct connectivity to the South-east Asian country next month. It has already announced to launch a flight service to Vietnamese commercial hub Ho Chi Minh City from New Delhi, starting November 5.
The agreement will enable Air Costa initiate discussions on exploring future opportunities of working together, it said.
Ramesh had recently said that his carrier will commence national operations from the first quarter of the next fiscal also international in a few years from now.

Air Costa has placed orders for 50 Embraer aircraft for USD 3 billion and has another 50 on options starting from 2018. It currently operates four Embraer aircraft and flies to nine cities with 34 flights every day.