New Zealand boosts defence spend to US$6.6 billion and vows increased closeness with Australia
This budget will be spent over the next four years and nearly doubles the country’s defence spending as part of GDP to 2%.
AirAsia moves into Vietnam with share in VietJet Air
AirAsia has acquired a 30% equity stake in VietJet Aviation JSC (VietJet Air) to create a Vietnam-based joint venture low-fare airline named VietJet AirAsia which will operate under the AirAsia brand.
The Ministry of Transportation of Vietnam approved the share acquisition on 9 February 2010. The formation of Vietjet AirAsia makes Vietnam AirAsia’s fourth country base, following Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia.
VietJet AirAsia will be operating both domestic and international flights and is currently finalising details regarding routes, frequencies and launch of flights.
AirAsia’s Group CEO Tony Fernandes has made known for a long time his vision of the airline being recognised as a true ASEAN carrier and this joint venture expands its reach into Vietnam, opening another gateway into the ASEAN region.
His new partners at VietJet commented, “The birth of VietJet AirAsia contributes to the diversification of the aviation market in Vietnam, providing more options to meet the air travel needs of people in Vietnam and in the region. The joint venture is a well-balanced combination of the management system, technical expertise, long-term experience in the airline industry, crew and international brand of AirAsia, and the financial strength, as well as Vietnamese market insights of VietJet Air.”
Licensed in the air transport sector in December 2007 with the initial capital of 600 billion dong, VietJet Air is the first and only aviation joint stock company in Vietnam allowed to operate both domestically and internationally. The founding shareholders of VietJet Air are the Sovico Holdings, HD Bank plus a range of experienced experts in the civil aviation industry in Vietnam.
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