Bamboo Airways Struggling Massively

Bamboo Airways, per Reuters, is having a hard time within the industry of late, with some pilots facing late salary payments as the airline restructures.

According to people familiar with the matter, 10% of the airline pilot staff departed the airline in June, equating to 30 foreign pilots.

Launching only in 2019, Bamboo Airways hopes to become a leading choice within the Vietnamese market and operate a fuel-efficient fleet of new aircraft. However, its operations and state as a company have been far from smooth since its launch.

One of the biggest obstacles has been the global pandemic, which substantially hurt their overall performance. However, paying employees late at the company is hardly a new emerging headline.

Bamboo, however, is undergoing a massive restructuring now, which doesn’t just include personnel but also its route and fleet networks to cut costs and emerge more stable. Reducing the number of pilots is vital to Bamboo’s achievement of these long-term goals.

Since its conception, Bamboo has had an ambitious business model, going up against already established Vietnam Airlines to compete in a market and launch services to all corners of the globe. Notably, the carrier also expressed interest in acquiring the Boeing 777X as part of its future growth plans; those plans will no doubt be halted.

However, those close to the Vietnamese industry have always kept a close eye on the developments at Bamboo, often stating that it’s a carrier with a ton of ambition but not a lot of direction. Not having the right direction can often contribute to a carrier’s downfall, and in the case of Bamboo, their operations have been far from smooth.

According to comments sent to Reuters, Bamboo will look to notably streamline its fleet, including removing certain fleet types, although these are yet to be specified. Its fleet comprises A321neos, A320neos, 787s regular A320ceos, and more. The airline will likely look towards changing the mix match with time.

Ultimately, stopping the bleeding seen as loss is one of the biggest priorities. However, late payments to staff, as revealed by Reuters, can hardly be viewed as a good look either.