Nguyen Truong Chinh (centre) is the 200 millionth passenger of Vietnam Airlines.

This marks a milestone in the carrier’s development history of more than two decades. The 200 millionth passenger was Vietnamese Nguyen Truong Chinh, who took Flight No VN223 from Hanoi to HCM City. The flight landed at Tan Son Nhat International Airport at 10.10am.

Duong Tri Thanh, Vietnam Airlines General Director, said: "Recording 200 million passengers in more than two decades since the foundation is a milestone for Vietnam Airlines."

"Today’s achievement is thanks to the trust of millions of domestic and international passengers. The ceremony to welcome the 200 millionth passenger is our tribute to every passenger who puts their trust in Vietnamese Airlines on every flight.”

Thanh pledged that the national carrier will continue to improve its services.

During the 1995-2017 period, Vietnam Airlines operated more than 1.6 million flights on both international and domestic routes and posted an average passenger growth rate of 11 percent per year.

The national carrier earned a total of more than VND777 trillion (US$34 billion) in revenue in the past 22 years, with average growth of 15.62% per year.

It earned pre-tax profit of nearly VND18 trillion (US$792 million) in the 22-year period and contributed VND41 trillion (US$1.8 billion) to the State budget.

At the event, Vietnam Airlines also officially launched "Flights of Love” – an activity for the good of the community to support projects aimed at better living. Owners of "Flights of Love” cards would be provided free tickets on all flights to implement their projects.

The first three projects of "Flights of Love” were Flood Housing Relief, Heart Foundation and Operation Smile.

Thanh stated that social responsibility was important in the development strategy of Vietnam Airlines, and hoped that "Flights of Love” will contribute to building a sustainable development community.