VIETNAM, July 15 - HÀ NỘI — Vietnam Airlines has announced its plan to operate direct flights between Hà Nội and Phnom Penh starting October 27.

The national flag carrier will run four round-trip flights using Airbus A321 aircraft per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

Currently, passengers travelling with the airline from Hà Nội to the Cambodian capital need to transit in Vientiane. The new route will raise its total to five, and weekly flights connecting the two countries to 86.

In addition, the carrier has signed memoranda of understanding on cooperation with Cambodia Angkor Air, the Cambodian Tourism Association and the Vietnamese travel company Saigontourist Group.

It is set to coordinate with its partners in tourism promotion activities in both Việt Nam and Cambodia and engage in mutual support regarding their services and products.

On average, about 450,000 people travel by air between the two countries each year, and the yearly growth rate has been 24 per cent in the past more than three decades.

In 2023, one million Vietnamese visited Cambodia, and more 400,000 Cambodians came to Việt Nam. — VNS