Bamboo Airways, an ambitious Vietnamese startup, is expanding their international route network with two new routes to Seoul. Utilizing Airbus A321neo aircraft, the carrier will expand with fourteen new weekly flights between leisure destinations in Vietnam to the South Korean capital city.
Bamboo Airways will fly to Seoul from Da Nang and Cam Ranh per a Bamboo Airways press release. Both routes will operate with a once-daily frequency. Overall, this will mark fourteen new weekly frequencies between Vietnam and Seoul.
The schedule is as follows:
- Da Nang to Seoul- Incheon departs at 16:10, arrives in Seoul at 22:30
- Seoul- Incheon to Da Nang departs at 23:35, arrives in Da Nang at 2:15 in the morning (the next day)
- Cam Ranh to Seoul- Incheon departs at 21:40 and arrives at 4:20 the next morning
- Departure from Seoul-Incheon to Cam Ranh leaves at 5:30 and arrives at 8:20
All times are local. According to reporting from Routesonline, service between Cam Ranh and Seoul will commence on November 15th while service between Da Nang and Seoul will commence on October 17th.
The red-eye Seoul to Da Nang and Cam Ranh to Seoul could be grueling. These are some longer flights. However, Bamboo Airways indicated that, onboard, passengers should expect hot meals on the flight.
Bamboo Airways will not offer lie-flat seating onboard their A321neos. As a leisure route, there tend to be more price-sensitive travelers. Not to mention, Seoul is an important destination. Bamboo Airways will compete with the likes of VietJet Air, Air Seoul, Asiana Airlines, and Korean Air among others. Furthermore, Vietnam Airlines also flies to several points in Vietnam from Seoul. In fact, Vietnam Airlines’ 787-10 is flying to Seoul, albeit from Ho Chi Minh City.
Bamboo Airways has some pretty ambitious plans that include flying an A380 to the United States. Although, it is unclear if Bamboo Airways will go through with the plans. But, for now, Bamboo Airways still sees room to expand. The airline is celebrating some significant milestones and even painted an A321 in a special livery commemorating their one-millionth passenger milestone.
However, with intense competition, it is unclear if Bamboo Airways could turn these routes into a success. Only time will be able to tell if these routes work for the airline. Bamboo Airways has not announced any sort of partnership with airlines that would bolster connections in Seoul. Korean Air and Vietnam Airlines, for example, as Skyteam partners, codeshare and offer connections.
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