Inaugural flights into Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi improve shipment times by one day and expand capacity for Vietnam-based businesses to deliver more, faster
It is five in the morning on 15 September in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), but UPS’s gateway at Tan S?n Nh?t International Airport is already a hive of activity. The ground crew are eagerly awaiting the arrival of UPS Airlines’ first ever flight to Vietnam, the latest destination added along the existing intra-Asia route flown by UPS.
They do not have to wait long – the Boeing 767F wide body aircraft painted in UPS’s signature “browntail” markings arrives right on time, and as it pulls into its parking spot and “blocks in”, the ground crew springs into action. Containers of packages from all over the world are unloaded, carrying anything from printed circuit boards to textiles destined for the city’s industrial zones. In a few days, Hanoi will also welcome its first UPS “browntail” on 19 September. Together, the new flights, a Boeing 767F to HCMC and a Boeing 747F to Hanoi, will cater to the growing import and export demands in Vietnam.
“These new flights are a reminder that Vietnam, fresh from concluding landmark trade deals such as the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, is continuing to grow its global trade footprint. UPS, with its smart, global logistics network, is dedicated to enabling businesses along their journey to expand across borders. The country’s dynamic workforce, market liberalization and strategic location, will ensure its position as an important manufacturing base and link in the global supply chain, now and into the future,” said Russell Reed, Managing Director of UPS Vietnam and Thailand.
Businesses across the country in North, South, and Central Vietnam, particularly in the retail and high tech industries, can now receive urgent shipments from key markets[1] in China, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia to Hanoi and HCMC in one day. Time-sensitive shipments from Australia, Europe[2] and the US can be delivered within two days. This means that an assembler of electronic equipment in Vietnam, for example, can import integrated circuits from a supplier in Germany quicker, speeding up its product cycle and allowing its exports to literally take flight to the rest of Asia with greater ease and confidence.
The new flight into HCMC begins and ends in Shenzhen, China, home to UPS’s largest facility in Asia. It operates four days a week and connects Vietnam to key gateways in Asia, US and Europe via UPS’s Shenzhen Hub. UPS’s flights into Hanoi operate every Saturday and ply the US-Asia route, reflecting Vietnam’s growing importance along this strategic trade lane. With the additional flight in Hanoi, capacity will also increase to better serve the needs of customers that seek to connect from Asia to the US.