Vietravel Airlines (VU, Hue Phu Bai International) will commence scheduled flight operations in early 2021 after it completed its certification procedures with the Vietnamese government on December 24, Vu Duc Bien, the General Director of Vietravel Airlines, has said.

In a statement, the start-up said it had now officially received its Air Operator's Certificate (AOC) along with operator's licence (OL) and route authorities. As such, its first commercial flight took place on December 26 with a one-off Hanoi Noi Bai International-Hue Phu Bai International-Ho Chi Minh City service.

Ticket sales for its first scheduled flight, set for January 1, 2021, will open this week, Vu added without disclosing which routes will go on offer.

Vietravel Airlines' fleet currently consists of a single A321-200 although two more are now expected in-country by mid-January 2021.