Before the pandemic, Vietnam was one of Asia's fastest-growing and most promising airline markets. Primarily driven by flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, that promise is now being picked up by Bamboo Airways, which launched its second Ho Chi Minh City to London Gatwick service this week. In reality, this is not an increase in capacity, as the route is replacing the previous connection to London Heathrow. However, those who like to fly in or out of LGW can now enjoy a second service from the up and coming Vietnamese carrier.

A second service to Gatwick

The inaugural flight, QH95, departed Ho Chi Minh City International (SGN) at 01:04 on Wednesday, well behind the scheduled departure of 00:05. The flight operated with a 294-seat Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, registration VN-A818 and MSN 62735, which has a three-class layout of 26 in business class with fully lie-flat seats, 21 in premium economy and 247 in the economy cabin.

As is often the way with long-haul sectors, flight QH95 made up the lost time by landing at London Gatwick Airport (LGW) nine minutes early at 07:46. The Dreamliner had taken 13:42 hours to cover the 10,224 kilometers (6,353 miles) as measured by the great-circle distance.

As the map shows, the flightpath takes a sharp detour to avoid Afghanistan's airspace, which it also follows on the return flight, QH96. That service departed London Gatwick at 11:05 on Wednesday, arriving back in Ho Chi Minh City at 05:43 the following day, after a flight time of 11:38 hours. Bamboo Airways (Bamboo) maximizes its aircraft utilization, and after four hours on the ground, the 787 was back in the air on its way to Frankfurt Airport (FRA).

According to ch-aviation.com, Bamboo has a fleet of 30 aircraft, all operational and earning money for the Vietnamese carrier. It has a surprisingly mixed fleet of eight aircraft types, although 22 are from the Airbus A320 family. The fleet includes one A319-100, six A320-200s, six A320neos, three A321-200s, four A321neos, and two A321NXs. Bamboo also operates three Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and five Embraer E190-100LRs. The fleet's average age is 8.2 years, and the data shows ten 787-9s to be delivered.

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Dreamliners are the future at Bamboo

The Ho Chi Minh service is the second new UK route launched by Bamboo recently. On October 30th, the airline launched QH93, a weekly nonstop Hanoi to London Gatwick service operated by the 787-9. Bamboo is a young, private airline that gained its air operator certificate and aviation license in 2018 and described itself as a hybrid airline. As borders reopened, the airline quickly added new international destinations, both east and west of its Vietnam base at Hanoi Noi Bai International (HAN).

In February, it launched flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Melbourne Airport (MEL), followed by Hanoi-Melbourne in April. In the same month, it launched in Europe, starting with Hanoi-Frankfurt and adding Hanoi-London Heathrow and Ho Chi Minh City-Frankfurt.

Besides its extensive domestic network, Bamboo is currently flying internationally in Asia to Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, Bangkok, and Tokyo. Further afield, it operates to Sydney and Melbourne in Australia, Frankfurt in Germany, and London in the UK. With its modern fleet, Bamboo is spreading its wings as it recovers from the pandemic.

What do you think of this airline and its plans? Let us know what you think in the comment section.

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  London Gatwick Airport

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  LGW/EGKK

  Country:

  United Kingdom

  CEO:

  Stewart Wingate

  Passenger Count :

  6,260,000 (2021)

  Runways :

  08L/26R - 2,565m (8,415ft) | 08R/26L - 3,316m (10,879ft)

  Terminals:

  North Terminal | South Terminal