On the morning of October 22, the National Assembly discussed in groups the draft Law on Civil Aviation of Vietnam (amended).
National Assembly delegate Le Huu Tri (Khanh Hoa delegation) affirmed that up to this point, replacing the law is extremely necessary to meet new development requirements.
He pointed out three major problems in the current aviation industry.
Accordingly, the situation of " too many airports" and planning are not reasonable. He expressed concern about the number of dense airports in Vietnam.
"Although our country is not a large country with a large population, we have too many airports. Some provinces even have 2 airports, and some provinces have 3 airports," said the delegate.
The delegate pointed out that there are provinces that are only a short distance apart but all have airports, while other means of transport can be used more effectively. He said that this issue needs to be reviewed in the national master plan to avoid wasting resources.
According to the delegate, the title "international airport" is not commensurate with reality. Many small-scale airports with limited infrastructure (short runways, narrow terminals) are called international airports.
"Every place is an international airport, even if it welcomes a flight a day, it is an international airport," the delegate said.
The delegate suggested that there should be clear standards for international airports, improving service quality and facilities to match the name, avoiding the situation of " Internationalization" in a formal way.
Regarding lax aviation discipline and "permanent delays" are the issues that delegates emphasized most strongly. He said that the situation of delays and cancellations of flights is happening too often, showing that "discipline in our aviation is not serious".
According to the delegate, this not only causes trouble, wastes time and money for passengers and society, but also affects the national image.
"I think this is not good for our seriousness in aviation at the moment. Continuous Delay, delay time is too much time to fly, increasing social costs", the delegate affirmed and compared with other countries, where flight time discipline is strictly implemented.
The delegate said that this situation also forms an unresersive habit among passengers.
To address the above shortcomings, delegate Le Huu Tri proposed that the amended law should have specific regulations to overcome the lack of discipline in the industry.
The delegate emphasized the need to encourage and expand the participation of non-state entities, including foreigners, in aviation activities. This will create a healthy competitive environment in terms of prices and service quality, thereby promoting the overall development of the industry.
The delegate cited the fact that domestic airfares are sometimes higher than international flights to Thailand or Singapore, which reduces the attractiveness of domestic tourism.
Also talking about this issue, delegate Dang Thi My Huong - Deputy Head of the Khanh Hoa delegation - suggested paying more attention to legalizing regulations on passenger rights and improving the quality of aviation services. Protecting passengers is to protect national prestige and enhance the image of Vietnam.
The delegate suggested clearly defining the right to information, support, and compensation in cases of delay, cancellation of trips, and loss of luggage. Legalize the responsibility for publicizing ticket prices, add-ons, ticket refund conditions, and avoid covering fees.
