VietJetAir (VJ, Hanoi Noi Bai International) intends to open a maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facility by 2026 that will service many of its own aircraft and target third-party customers, according to its chief operating officer, Michael Hickey.
"Because we have a fleet of narrowbody and widebody aircraft, we’re going to build a facility capable of supporting both,” he said during an Aviation Week MRO Asia-Pacific conference this week.
ch-aviation fleets data reveals that VietJetAir operates 82 aircraft, including eighteen A320-200s, thirty-six A321-200s, eleven A321-200Ns, ten A321-200NX, and seven A330-300s. Subsidiary Thai VietJetAir (VZ, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi) operates a further twelve A320-200s and six A321-200s.
Hickey said VietJetAir had already signed a contract to acquire a hangar at an undisclosed airport in Viet Nam and that the carrier had started doing C-checks there. Between now and 2026, he added, it will also use the facility to train employees and accumulate MRO experience so that by 2026 "we can hit the ground running and be able to offer third-party services to other companies."
Previously, Hickey has discussed VietJetAir's MRO ambitions by saying the airline hopes to provide MRO services to Vietnamese-registered aircraft up to Code F (aircraft with wingspans up to 79 metres).
Earlier this week, ch-aviation reported that Viet Nam's Ministry of Transport is preparing an open tender for the construction of a maintenance facility at the new Long Thanh airport, with VietJet among the parties expressing interest. The first stage of that airport, located 40 kilometres east of Ho Chi Minh City, is expected to open in 2025.
