Vietnam Airlines (VN, Hanoi Noi Bai International) intends to sell three more A321-200s as part of its plan to restructure the carrier's fleet and exit aircraft more than ten years old. Last week, the airline released initial information detailing plans for a planned auction later this quarter. Vietnam Airlines is undergoing a period of restructuring and says it aims to increase operational efficiencies (and reduce costs) by divesting older aircraft while also generating funds from liquidating assets.
According to the Vietnamese-language documentation, the three aircraft are VN-A350 (msn 2974), a 16.59-year-old A321-200 now undergoing maintenance at Hanoi Noi Bai International; VN-A351 (msn 3005), a 16.50-year-old A321-200 also undergoing maintenance at Hanoi; and VN-A352 (msn 3013), a 16.49-year-old A321-200, which remains operational. The airline is setting a floor price of USD5 million per plane.
All three aircraft began flying in 2007. VN-A350 has spent the entirety of that time at Vietnam Airlines, while VN-A351 spent three years at Cambodia Angkor Air (K6, Siem Reap) between 2009 and 2012, and VN-A352 spent twelve months at Vietnam Airlines subsidiary Jetstar Pacific (Ho Chi Minh City). The aircraft are the oldest in Vietnam Airlines' forty-eight-strong A321-200 fleet. However, according to ch-aviation fleets data, another two A321-200s are aged over sixteen years, and another two are over 15 years. In total, only eight of the carrier's forty-eight A321-200s are aged under ten years. In 2020, the airline sold five A321-200s for USD37 million as part of its strategy to offload older aircraft.
