TOKYO — General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam and State President Tô Lâm attended a ceremony in Tokyo on November 9 marking the 10th anniversary of the strategic partnership between Vietnam Airlines and Japan's ANA Holdings.

He also witnessed the signing of a framework agreement on pursuing a joint venture on routes.

The ceremony was held during the top leader’s official visit to Japan from October 8 to 11.

Under the new framework agreement, the two plan to share revenue and coordinate flight schedules, fares, seat inventory, sales, marketing and passenger services on routes between Việt Nam and Japan.

The agreement is expected to help both carriers make more efficient use of their networks and resources, while developing products to meet market demand and improving booking, connections and frequent flyer benefits.

Cooperation also extends beyond commercial operations to aircraft operations, maintenance and repair, personnel training, ground handling, inflight catering and cargo transportation. The airlines have also extended their technical support agreement.

The two sides will consider expanding collaboration in technology, digital transformation, data management and operational optimisation.

For Vietnam Airlines, the partnership provides access to Japanese expertise in management, operations and service quality as it seeks to improve service standards and strengthen its workforce, part of the plan to achieve the goal of become a five-star rating airline under Skytrax standards by 2030.

Improved air connectivity is expected to support trade, tourism and people-to-people exchanges and contribute to deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

The move towards a joint venture marks a new phase in the relationship, building on a decade of strategic shareholding and codeshare cooperation.

Vietnam Airlines and ANA Holdings signed their strategic partnership agreement in Tokyo in May 2016, with ANA Holdings becoming a strategic shareholder in the Vietnamese carrier two months later.

Over the past decade, the two airlines have expanded cooperation in codeshare services, frequent flyer programmes, product development, sales and marketing, improving connections between in destinations in Việt Nam and Japan.

As of October 2026, Vietnam Airlines operated 11 direct routes between the two countries, with 72 flights per week.

In the first nine months of 2026, the airline saw the number of passengers on the Japanese market rise by 18 per cent year on year, while passenger revenue increase by 26 per cent. — BIZHUB/VNS