Over 10% of pilots employed at Bamboo Airways (QH, Hanoi Noi Bai International) have resigned in recent months because of delays in paying salaries. Citing unidentified sources with knowledge of the matter, Reuters reported that the airline had been consistently late paying the salaries of foreign pilots, who make up a large percentage of the carrier's overall numbers.
Around 30 pilots have reportedly resigned over the issue in the last two months, with Bamboo's management using an internal company messaging platform to tell them that their salaries would be paid late. On August 21, it told them that 35% of their salaries due in mid-August would be paid on that day with the remainder to be paid on a later unspecified date.
Bamboo Airways pays its pilots monthly. The payroll amounts due in August for work performed in July were eventually paid, but Reuters' sources said the pilots had received a similar message and experienced similar delays in July for the June work period. Additionally, salaries for duties performed in August were not paid on their due date, September 15, and remained unpaid as of September 25.
Bamboo Airways did not respond to a request for comment.
According to ch-aviation PRO airlines data, Bamboo Airways flies to 31 destinations in 11 countries. It operates 30 aircraft, including six A320-200s, six A320-200Ns, four A321-200s, four A321-200Ns, two A321-200NX, three B787-9s, and five ERJ 190-100LRs. It also has a further ten B787-9s and a single A321-200 on order. The airline is undergoing restructuring amid ongoing losses, has seen majority ownership and board changes, but it has denied bankruptcy speculation.
Bamboo CEO Nguyen Ngoc Trong recently admitted that the airline has faced difficulties but insisted that management, the board, shareholders, and the government are committed to restoring the airline to good financial health. One major lender, the Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank), recently had one of its board members appointed to the Bamboo Airways board. The airline owes Sacombank VND3 trillion dong (USD123.6 million), but the bank has noted that its loans are secured and repayments have been made on time. It has also publicly stated its support for Bamboo and has raised the possibility of taking a stake in it.
