Franco-Italian aircraft manufacturer ATR sees potential for 87 unserved short-haul routes in Vietnam

ATR is a Franco-Italian aircraft manufacturer jointly owned by France's Airbus and Italy's Leonardo.

Its headquarters and final assembly operations are located in France, while major parts of the aircraft are manufactured in Italy.

ATR shared the findings with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, citing a joint study conducted with the Transport Engineering Design Inc.

The study identified 149 potential domestic routes shorter than 555 kilometers, of which 87 have yet to be launched.

The assessment comes as Vietnam moves forward with plans to expand its airport infrastructure, including the airports of Phan Thiet, Gia Binh, Quang Tri, Mang Den, and Van Phong, which are being either planned or prepared for operation.

According to ATR, most of the unserved routes would connect provinces, coastal cities, highland regions, islands, and airports located outside the country’s main aviation corridors.

The company estimates that Vietnam may need about 25 regional aircraft such as the ATR 72-600 to serve these routes.

Vietnam’s aviation market is currently concentrated on major routes such as Hanoi–Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City–Da Nang, and Hanoi–Da Nang.

Meanwhile, many regional routes with moderate demand remain difficult to operate using narrow-body jet aircraft because of higher operating costs and relatively small passenger volumes during the early stages of market development.

Jean-Pierre Clercin, ATR’s regional director for Asia-Pacific, said Vietnam possesses favorable conditions for the growth of regional aviation thanks to rising travel demand, an expanding airport network, and numerous city pairs well suited to turboprop aircraft.

According to Clercin, the ATR 72-600 offers lower operating costs and consumes less fuel than short-haul jet aircraft of comparable size.

He noted that these advantages are particularly important for newly launched routes, where airlines must balance operating expenses, ticket prices, and seat occupancy rates.

A standard ATR 72-600 is configured with 72 seats, although airlines typically operate the aircraft with around 68 seats.

The smaller capacity can make it easier to achieve higher load factors, especially on new routes that require time to build passenger demand.

In Vietnam, VASCO, a subsidiary of Vietnam Airlines, currently operates ATR aircraft on routes linking Ho Chi Minh City with Con Dao Island, now a special zone administered by Ho Chi Minh City, and Ca Mau, the southernmost province of Vietnam.

However, regional aircraft account for only about three percent of Vietnam’s total commercial fleet, significantly below the global average of around 25 percent.

ATR said it is currently in discussions with several Vietnamese airlines about introducing the ATR 72-600 into their operations.

The company emphasized that the viability of a short-haul route depends not only on geographic distance but also on actual travel times by road.

“If traveling from point A to point B by road takes only about two hours, an air route may not be necessary. But if the road journey takes four hours, a 45-minute flight can provide a very clear time-saving advantage,” an ATR representative said.

Tran Thi Lam Phuong, deputy commercial director of Air Cambodia, said the airline currently operates ATR 72-600 aircraft on the Ho Chi Minh City–Phnom Penh route.

The flight itself takes approximately 38 minutes, while the total travel time, including take-off and landing procedures, is about one hour.

With this advantage, regional aircraft can target travelers willing to pay more for significant time savings compared with road transport.

Air Cambodia cited medical travel as one example. Passengers from Cambodia can fly to Ho Chi Minh City for medical examinations or treatment and return home on the same day, a travel pattern that would be difficult to accommodate by road because of the longer journey time and reduced convenience.