On the second day of a more subdued Paris Air Show, Vietjet signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Airbus for 100 A321neo aircraft with 50 options on June 17, 2025.
The formalised deal confirms Airline Economics' report in April that the airline was looking to make a substantial Airbus narrowbody order for over 100 jets.
The initial report stated that the airline was looking to formalise the deal in tandem with French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Vietnam in late May. Instead, the company disclosed an order for an additional 20 A330neo aircraft during the presidential visit on May 26, 2025. A person familiar with the matter said that there were some delays in finalising the narrowbody order, which led to its announcement at the Paris Air Show.
Vietjet chairwoman Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao said at the conference: “We have plans to build out Vietjet into an aviation group with multiple airlines operating across multiple jurisdictions. Likewise, we also have an ambition to build out southeast Asia and more specifically Vietnam into an aviation hub for passenger transport and logistics, as well as aviation and adjacent services and infrastructure.”
Vietjet already has a significant narrowbody backlog with Airbus, including the A321neo, as well as with Boeing. The company did not disclose delivery dates for this newly announced order. However, a person familiar had told Airline Economics that with Airbus’ delivery slots pushing further back, the order would allow Vietjet to secure delivery slots for around 2031.
“Our plan is to interlink regional destinations such as India, China, and Indonesia with our long haul international routes to really build out a very dense flight route,” continued Thao. “This implies that we need to build out a top of the line and diverse fleet. In reality, unfortunately, some of the OEMs are not able to keep up with our pace of growth and ambitions. Hence this is the main purpose for our large scale purchase today.”
While the airline did not explicitly state how this order would be financed, Thao said it had “prepared all the necessary financing option” and pointed to the presence of delegates from Ho Chi Minh City Development Bank who were in attendance to witness the signing.