Vietnam Economic News’ Thu Huong spoke with the representative from CRTC Board of Management, Mr. Sulaiman Zainul Abidin, Deputy General Director and Chief Operating Officer.
What is your viewpoint towards the role of CXR T2 in promoting economic development and tourism services in Khanh Hoa Province, in particular, and coastal areas of the South Central region, in general?
Vietnam has the potential to develop tourism. In recent years, tourism has been one of the major drivers of Vietnam’s economic growth.
Tourism has two main components: hospitality and transportation. One without the other will only have limited success. The role of CRTC is to ensure that essential air transportation infrastructure is adequate to provide for access in and out of Khanh Hoa Province.
CXR T2 is one of the most modern terminals in terms of facilities and equipment, and we process passengers and their baggage efficiently to provide that catalyst for our tourism. Cam Ranh Airport is also the largest international airport in this part of the country, and many travelers see it as a gateway to the coastal areas of the South Central region of Vietnam.
CXR T2 has been put into operation for more than one year. Could you share this project’s effects on Khanh Hoa Province’s socioeconomic development as well as the Vietnamese aviation sector?
The Terminal 2 passenger terminal building has raised the standards of airport infrastructure in Vietnam, and our aim is to match that of the leading airports in the region. CRTC and Terminal 2 not only provide employment for the communities within and around Khanh Hoa Province, but also serve as a high quality organization with a purposeful mission to better our economy via trade and tourism.
In the first 12 months of operations, the passenger traffic at Terminal 2 increased by 29.1 percent. This was a significant increase compared to the global average of 6.7 percent. We also welcomed eight new airlines operating on international routes in the last 12 months, bringing the total to 27 airlines. Apart from the healthy statistics, the image and reputation of CRTC and Terminal 2 has been well-received both locally and regionally over time.
At the end of 2018, our Terminal 2 scored the second-best points for service quality among major international airports in Vietnam, as monitored by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV). Terminal 2’s building architecture has been awarded one of Vietnam Association of Architects’ Silver Prizes for the National Architecture Award and also voted the Community’s Favorite Architectural Works via public ballot.
Terminal 2 has helped resolve the overload of Terminal 1 which was designed to serve 2.5 million passengers annually but in fact had to serve 6.4 million passengers in 2017. Meeting four-star standards, Terminal 2 provides passengers with quality service, contributing to promoting economic growth of Khanh Hoa Province and other coastal localities in the South Central region.
CXR T2 is one of the top five winners of the Routes Asia 2019 Marketing Awards. What is the meaning of this award for CRTC?
Frankly, this Top 5 Route Marketing accolade came as a surprise. While we have put in tremendous efforts in proactively engaging the airlines to promote our destination and our airport, the fact that we were recognized for this award within the first 12 months of operating Terminal 2, was genuinely unexpected. The award was voted by the airlines in Routes Asia 2019, and CRTC is humbled and grateful for that recognition. This Top 5 recognition is not only a reward, but it also serves as motivation to better our efforts for more airline marketing in the future.
Could you share CRTC’s next steps in the coming years?
In terms of marketing, CRTC will continue to engage more airlines in the coming years to open more direct links to our airport. We will also be working closely with the Tourism Department and our hospitality partners to organize more events in Khanh Hoa to further promote and market the destination. At the same time, having huge growth rates is also filling up our Terminal 2 quicker than expected. Hence, we have fast-forwarded our expansion to increase the handing capacity of T2, due to be completed by next March. It is an exciting time to be part of the development of Khanh Hoa Province, and CRTC is proud to directly contribute to this growth in many years to come.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam recently surveyed the level of passenger satisfaction at five major airports in the country. Terminal 2 of the Cam Ranh International Airport scored the second-best points for service quality. This is the result of CRTC’s efforts to enhance service quality, reflecting the satisfaction of passengers when using service at the terminal.
