The morning air over Hanoi’s Noi Bai Airport carried that quiet, purposeful hum that only airports know. On 1 November 2025, a sleek Airbus A321 rolled down the runway and lifted into a pale blue sky, its tail marked with the golden sunburst of Vietnam’s newest airline, Sun PhuQuoc Airways.
At 7:15 a.m., flight 9G1203, with 220 passengers aboard, was airborne, bound for Phu Quoc Island. It was more than just a flight. It was a statement, a debut, a handshake between ambition and reality, and the official arrival of Vietnam’s first leisure airline.
A bold new player in a crowded sky
For Sun Group, Vietnam’s powerhouse of resorts, cable cars, and beachfront grandeur, launching an airline seems an inevitable next step. The group’s latest venture, Sun PhuQuoc Airways (SPA), will link Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang with Phu Quoc. By next year, it plans to extend its reach to South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, and India.
“Today marks not just the start of a new airline but a new way of connecting travel and tourism,” said Nguyen Manh Quan, SPA’s chief executive, before the flight. “We want every journey to feel like part of the holiday itself.”
That philosophy might sound like standard aviation rhetoric, but SPA has the backing and the flair to give it wings.
A flight with flavour
Passengers on the inaugural flight found small touches that suggested Sun Group’s fingerprints: a warm service tone, a calm cabin atmosphere, and an Éric Kayser pastry instead of the usual airline bun.
Kayser, the famed French baker, happened to open his first Vietnamese outlet that same morning in Sunset Town, Phu Quoc. Coincidence? Hardly. The pairing was deliberate and theatrical, even the kind of cross-promotion that Sun Group does with a wink.
To crown it all, a live in-flight musical performance filled the cabin somewhere over the Mekong Delta, offering a brief, whimsical reminder that not every airline is designed for spreadsheets and suits.
A welcome worthy of a film set
As the plane taxied to its gate at Phu Quoc International Airport, two fire trucks arched streams of water over the runway in a traditional aviation salute. Ground crew applauded, camera shutters clicked, and passengers stepped off into a festival-like scene, teddy bears in pilot uniforms, flowers, and music.
If the aim was to make an impression, it worked. SPA’s debut wasn’t about quiet efficiency. It was about spectacle, marking Phu Quoc’s rise as Vietnam’s most ambitious island destination.
An island transformed
Phu Quoc’s evolution over the past decade has been staggering. Once a sleepy fishing outpost, it now gleams with luxury resorts, cable cars, beach clubs, and entertainment complexes, most of which bear the Sun Group name.
With the launch of its own airline, the company has effectively completed the loop, building not just the destination but also the means to reach it. It’s a strategy that blends logistics with legacy: control the skies, control the story.
And the story is working. Visitor numbers to Phu Quoc are climbing, and with the Lunar New Year 2026 travel surge approaching, SPA’s timing is more than convenient; it’s commercial choreography at its finest.
Targeting a sweet spot
Vietnam’s aviation scene is lively, dominated by budget carriers and full-service flagships. Sun PhuQuoc Airways intends to sit somewhere in the middle, offering comfort without extravagance and affordability without austerity.
That could be a refreshing alternative for domestic travellers weary of long check-ins and short tempers. And for international visitors headed straight to the beaches, it may soon become the preferred route — a direct link between big-city bustle and island calm.
Eyes on the horizon
Sun Group’s ambitions rarely stop at the runway. With its track record in tourism infrastructure, it’s not hard to imagine SPA becoming the bridge for future resort developments across Vietnam’s coastline.
This is no casual side project. It’s a blueprint for brand expansion that neatly integrates air travel into Sun Group’s broader tourism ecosystem.
For now, though, the achievement is simpler: an airline born, a successful first flight, and a new player giving Vietnam’s aviation market a polished jolt of leisure-class optimism.
And as the sun set over Phu Quoc that evening, the symbolism was hard to miss. Once a whisper on the map, the island now hums with jet engines and ambition.
For flight information: www.sunphuquocairways.com.
Final Note
Where other airlines chase the practical, Sun PhuQuoc Airways chases the pleasurable, a rare strategy that might work.
By My Thanh Pham – (c) 2025
Read Time: 4 minutes
About the Writer
My Thanh Pham has worn more travel hats than most luggage racks could hold. After taking a course in travel and tourism, she found herself deep in the business of arranging itineraries across South-East Asia, matching travellers to temples, beaches, and the occasional night train, with a knack for making the complicated look easy.
Not content with life behind the desk, she joined a Vietnamese airline, juggling reservations one day and the frontline bustle of the airport the next. It gave her a ringside seat to the theatre of travel: the missed flights, the joyous reunions, and the endless stories that airports never fail to serve.
These days, My Thanh has swapped ticket stubs for a writer’s keyboard at Global Travel Media. Her words carry the same steady hand she once brought to bookings, guiding readers through the rich, unpredictable world of travel.
