Vietnam Airlines and All Nippon Airways collaborate on share purchase.

The contract signed between the two parties confirmed that ANA Group would purchase 8.771% of Vietnam Airlines' shares for VND 2.431 billion (equivalent to USD 109 million). It is expected that after the completion of the transactions on July 1, 2016, ANA will officially become a strategic shareholder of Vietnam Airlines.

VNA CEO Pham Ngoc Minh and ANA Group CEO Shinya Katanozaka signed a share purchase agreement in the presence of Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Nhat and VNA Chairman Pham Viet Thanh.

This strategic partnership will enable Vietnam Airlines and ANA Group to leverage each other's strengths to expand their flight networks and develop new products. Accordingly, the two parties will implement a codeshare agreement and frequent flyer program starting from October 30, 2016. VNA and ANA will codeshare on 30 domestic routes in Japan and Vietnam, as well as 10 international routes between the two countries, to provide greater convenience for customers. In addition, frequent flyers of each airline can accumulate miles when flying on codeshare flights and receive rewards on flights operated by both airlines. Furthermore, VNA and ANA Group will also cooperate on a range of services related to passenger check-in, cargo services, transportation, catering, aircraft maintenance, and other services at airports in Japan and Vietnam.

VNA and ANA exchanged strategic cooperation documents in the presence of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

ANA Group will appoint representatives to the Board of Directors of Vietnam Airlines and commits to sharing management expertise to support Vietnam Airlines in improving service quality and optimizing operational efficiency. Specifically, ANA Group and its subsidiaries commit to providing technical support to VNA and its subsidiaries in the following areas: Human resource management; Support in developing strategic plans for fleet, network, and flight schedules; Support in flight operations management; Support in aircraft maintenance; Information technology; and Support in training (including flight attendants).

Mr. Shinya Katanozaka, CEO of ANA Group, said: “For us, sharing ANA Group’s years of experience with Vietnam Airlines, including supporting the improvement of service quality and contributing to the overall growth and development of both companies, is a great honor. Through this business partnership and investment, ANA Group will further promote economic and cultural relations between Japan and other Asian countries, as well as boost Japanese tourism.”

Mr. Pham Ngoc Minh, General Director of Vietnam Airlines, said: “Seeking partners and increasing capital for the business is an important part of Vietnam Airlines' efforts to restructure and enhance its competitiveness in the international market. Cooperation with ANA Group, which owns one of the leading airlines in the region and the world in terms of service quality, will give us more confidence in modernizing our fleet with the latest generation aircraft, expanding our market, improving service quality, and operating more efficiently.”

Vietnam Airlines operates a young fleet of 89 modern aircraft, including many of the world's most advanced models, such as Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and Airbus A350-900 XWB. Vietnam Airlines' route network connects to 20 domestic destinations and 29 international destinations, and currently operates 66 flights per week to Japan, including Narita and Haneda airports (Tokyo), Chubu airport (Nagoya), Kansai airport (Osaka), and Fukuoka airport.

The Thanh