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Defunct South Vietnamese airline From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Active from 1951 to 1975, Air Viet Nam (Air VN) (Vietnamese: Hãng Hàng không Việt Nam) was South Vietnam's first commercial air carrier, headquartered in District 1, Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City).[1] Established under a decree by Chief of State Bảo Đại, the airline flew over two million passengers, throughout the Vietnam War, and until its collapse due to the Fall of Saigon.
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2010) |
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| Founded | 8 June 1951 | ||||||
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| Ceased operations | 30 April 1975 | ||||||
| Hubs | Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Saigon | ||||||
| Secondary hubs | Da Nang International Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 15 | ||||||
| Destinations | 20 | ||||||
| Parent company | Government of the State of Vietnam 1951–1955, the Republic of Vietnam 1955–1975 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Saigon; South Vietnam | ||||||
Air Viet Nam's initial fleet consisted of five Cessna 170s, Douglas DC-3s and Douglas DC-4s with the airline flying mainly between cities and towns throughout Vietnam. By 1975, Air Viet Nam was using a fleet of Boeing aircraft, some leased from Pan Am and China Airlines consisting of a number of Boeing 707s and Boeing 727s on both regional and international routes.
As passenger traffic increased with the start of the Vietnam War, Air Viet Nam added aircraft, initially Viscounts, DC-3s, and DC-4s. It eventually obtained more modern aircraft, including Boeing 727s, some of which were obtained from Air France and Pan Am. At least one C-46 was leased from China Airlines, and was flown by a Taiwanese crew. That aircraft had a color scheme different from the rest of the Air Viet Nam fleet.
In an unusual joint venture, Air Viet Nam was joined by Continental Air Services (CASI), a subsidiary airline of Continental Airlines set up to provide operations and airlift support in Southeast Asia, in the mid-1960s. Under this agreement, CASI would share passengers and cargo routes with Air Viet Nam on certain domestic and international routes. In addition, CASI and Air Viet Nam would share hangars and flight lines. CASI also picked up a portion of aircraft maintenance. Heavy engine overhaul was done in Hong Kong, by China Airlines, and some in Taiwan by Air Asia (a subsidiary of Air America). CASI paid a portion of its revenues to Air Viet Nam for the routes and privileges. Many CASI aircraft operating from Saigon carried the dragon emblem of Air Viet Nam.
In 1972, Air Vietnam had one B747-200 leased from Air France and another B747-100 leased from Pan Am both of which were flown back to their owners within a few weeks of the Fall of Saigon.[citation needed]
During the Fall of Saigon and the impending invasion of North Vietnam into South Vietnam, Air Viet Nam decided to assist and help all South Vietnamese citizens to escape to neighboring countries. Many of their pilots and crew worked long hours ferrying South Vietnamese citizens to Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines, and other Southeast Asian countries to escape the invading North Vietnamese army. One Boeing 707 flew to Taipei for the use of former President Nguyen Van Thieu and his wife, and close aides had been flown into exile on a CIA C-118 transport. Thieu was extended the courtesy once in exile of the Boeing jet as he went from first Taiwan, then the United Kingdom, before finally flying onto the United States of America where it was returned to Pan Am from which it had been leased.[2] An Air Vietnam aircraft abandoned at the Songshan Airport was later handed over to a Taiwanese airline.[3]
One Air Vietnam Boeing 727 was returned to Vietnam from Hong Kong in early June 1975, by lead pilot Huynh Minh Boong, who had married General Pham Hung's sister. Captain Huynh Minh Boong with over 10,000 flight hours, was a pilot on Vietnam Airlines overseas flights due to his IATA credentials, then in early 1980 he was appointed as head of training of Vietnam Airlines, now retired and lives in Ho Chi Minh City.
The only commercial jet airplanes transferred from Air Vietnam to Vietnam Airlines are: one Boeing 707 and one Boeing 727-100.
According to the timetable published in 1969, Air Vietnam codeshared with the following airlines:
Air Viet Nam flight crews were composed of civilians with a mixture of ex-military pilots, (mostly former Republic of Vietnam Air Force), along with a few Americans. However, one American CASI pilot reported that the Taiwanese crew of the leased C-46 always parked its aircraft separately at Tân Sơn Nhứt International Airport in Saigon and kept its distance from the regular Air Viet Nam and CASI crews.
Pilots for Air Viet Nam wore a distinctive gold/bronze wing with a center shield containing a colored enamel version of the dragon/flag. It can be presumed that some senior grades of pilot and crew existed, although how these were indicated is not clear.
Stewardesses, or flight attendants, wore a gold or bronze metal wing with an embossed dragon emblem. Uniforms consisted of the traditional áo dài in a variety of colors.
Air Vietnam aircraft generally had a single or dual green stripe down the main fuselage. The top fuselage was generally white with a natural metal (silver) lower. The colorful dragon/flag roundel appeared in various sizes, most often on the tail rudder. Sometimes the roundel would appear alone and occasionally with a dual green stripe. The wording "Air Viet Nam" appeared in red/orange lettering above the windows on all large aircraft except the 727s, which were marked "Hàng Không Việt Nam". Exceptions to these schemes included the early Viscount aircraft, which were all white with a green stripe and had the roundel appearing on the front fuselage. The Chinese C-46 aircraft had a blue and red nose-side stripe with the roundel appearing on the rudder.
Advertisements used from the mid-1960s included South Vietnamese Olympians, such as Thach Thi Ngoc, and flamboyant military officer Nguyễn Cao Kỳ, whose wife Madame Nguyễn Cao Kỳ was a flight stewardess before they were married. These celebrities promoted the airline's operation of Viscounts on the "Green Dragon Route", alternating flights from Saigon to Siem Reap, Cambodia; Bangkok, Thailand; and Hong Kong. Timetables indicate domestic routes covering destinations as far north as Huế, as far south as Cà Mau, and including almost every major city in between.
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