Low-cost carrier Vietjet Air has launched a twice-weekly service connecting Prague to Hanoi with a technical stop in Almaty, marking the first regular connection between Prague and Hanoi in the modern history of the Czech Republic. Operating via an Airbus A330-300, the route serves a market that saw over 75,000 travelers between Prague and Hanoi in both directions last year.
The Bottom Line
- Capacity and Schedule: Flights operate twice weekly on Tuesdays and Saturdays using a 377-seat Airbus A330-300, with return fares starting around 18,000 CZK.
- Fifth Freedom Rights: The carrier holds traffic rights to sell seats independently on the Prague-Almaty leg, reviving a direct connection to Kazakhstan’s largest city lost since Czech Airlines departed in 2016.
- Market Competition: The entry follows Starlux Airlines into Václav Havel Airport Prague, increasing low-fare pressure on regional long-haul routes.
Inaugural Flight and Operational Schedule
The inaugural service, flight VJ31 utilizing Airbus A330-300 registration VN-A817, touched down at Václav Havel Airport Prague. The route operates on Tuesdays and Saturdays, departing Prague at 20:55. Passengers disembark during a roughly ninety-minute technical stop at Almaty International Airport in Kazakhstan.
Radomír Lašák, chairman of the board of Letiště Praha, noted that the link fills a void for the Czech market, which recorded over 75,000 bidirectional travelers between Prague and Hanoi last year. Projections from the airport indicate the route could transport upwards of 67,000 passengers in its initial twelve months.
Commercial Dynamics and Regional Connectivity
The introduction of the service brings structural changes to ticket pricing on Asian corridors from Central Europe. Josef Trejbal, commercial director of ticket portal Letuška.cz, stated that overall Czech demand for flight tickets has grown year-on-year, with Asian destinations showing significant gains. Return tickets for the Hanoi route start at 18,000 CZK, while travelers booking exclusively the Prague-Almaty segment can secure fares for under half that amount.
Securing fifth freedom rights from Kazakh authorities allows Vietjet Air to sell tickets between Prague and Almaty. This dual-market strategy revives direct commercial links to Almaty for the first time since 2016, when Czech carrier operations to the region ceased. Beyond point-to-point transit, the airline’s network provides secondary connections to over 40 destinations across Asia and Australia.
| Carrier | Frequency | Primary Destination | Starting Economy Fare (CZK) |
|---|---|---|---|
| VietJet | 2× weekly | Hanoi (via Almaty) | 18,000 Kč |
| Starlux | 4× weekly | Taipei | 21,000 Kč |
| Korean Air | 4× weekly | Soul | 19,500 Kč |
| Hainan Airlines | 3× weekly | Peking | 24,000 Kč |
Broader Market Implications for Prague Hub Strategy
The arrival of a low-cost long-haul carrier follows a failed attempt by Bamboo Airways in early 2020, whose planned nonstop Boeing 787-9 operations were derailed by pandemic restrictions before commercial execution. By utilizing widebody Airbus A330-300 aircraft configured with 377 seats—including 12 business class berths and 365 economy seats—Vietjet Air targets both the Vietnamese community residing in the Czech Republic and tourists.
As competition intensifies at Václav Havel Airport with new entrants like Starlux Airlines, market participants are monitoring whether ancillary revenue models can maintain low baseline fares amid fluctuating jet fuel expenses and complex operational routing through Central Asian airspace.
