VOA慢速英语：越南获准开通直飞美国航班

Vietnam Airlines Can Now Fly Directly to US

越南获准开通直飞美国航班

United States officials decided last week to let Vietnam fly passenger airplanes directly to U.S. airports. The decision is seen as another sign of international recognition for the Southeast Asian country.

美国官员上周决定允许越南客机直飞美国。该决定被视为这个东南亚国家获得国际认可的另一个标志。

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced on February 14 that it has awarded a "Category 1" rating for Vietnam. The rating means that Vietnamese companies have met international guidelines for air safety. And Vietnamese airlines can get permits from the FAA to fly directly to the United States and "carry the codes of U.S. carriers."

美国联邦航空管理局(FAA)于2月14日宣布授予越南“一类”评级。该评级意味着越南公司符合国际航空安全准则，越南航空公司可以获得美国联邦航空管理局许可直飞美国，并“携带美国航空公司的代码(即航班代码共享)。”

Vietnam's Communist Party news website Nhan Dan reported that Vietnamese officials began working toward this goal in 2012. They set out to solve 49 safety problems that the FAA found a year later, the website said.

越南人民报(Nhan Dan)新闻网站报道称，越南官员于2012年开始朝着这个目标努力。该网站称，他们开始着手解决一年之后美国联邦航空管理局发现的49个安全问题。

The FAA said its "Category 1" rating for Vietnam is based on an assessment made in August 2018. In order to keep the rating, Vietnam must follow international safety standards for aircraft operations and maintenance.

美国联邦航空管理局表示他们对越南的“一类”评级是基于2018年8月的一项评估。为了保持这个评级，越南必须遵守飞机运营和维护的国际安全标准。

Adam McCarthy is chief economist with Mekong Economics, a development advisory service based in Hanoi. He noted, "It's been a slow and progressive bringing back [of] Vietnam into the international community."

亚当·麦卡蒂(Adam McCarthy)是湄公河经济的首席经济学家，这是一家位于河南的开发咨询服务公司。他指出：“这是缓慢而渐进地将越南带入国际社会。”

Bigger economy, more fliers

经济更强，飞机乘客更多

Last month, Vietnam officially joined the 11-country Comprehensive and Progressive Trans Pacific Partnership. The trade agreement covers about 13.5 percent of the world economy. The European Union is also expected to negotiate its own trade deal with Vietnam.

上个月，越南正式加入由11个国家签署的《全面与进步跨太平洋伙伴关系协定》。该贸易协定约占世界经济的13.5%。预计欧盟也将会与越南谈判贸易协定。

These developments are expected to bring additional investment to the Vietnamese economy. Foreign investment has fueled Vietnam's economic growth of 6 to 7 percent a year since 2012.

预计这些发展将会给越南经济带来额外投资。自2012年以来，外国投资推动越南经济年增长率达6%到7%。

The growth is set to expand the middle class to about one-third of the country's 93 million population by next year, the Boston Consulting Group estimates. And Vietnamese are spending some of their new wealth on airfares.

波士顿咨询集团预计，到明年这些增长将会使该国的中产阶级扩大到占该国9300万人口的1/3左右。越南人开始将他们一些新的财富花在机票上。

In 2017, Vietnam had 94 million air passengers, including 13 million foreign nationals. That was 16 percent higher than the number a year earlier. The International Air Transport Association projects the country will become the world's fifth fastest growing aviation market by 2035.

2017年，越南发送了9400万飞机乘客，其中包括1300万外国人，比前一年的数字高出了16%。国际航空运输协会预计，到2035年，该国将会成为全球增长第五快的航空市场。

Returnees, students and business travelers

海归、学生和商务乘客

The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the United States is home to about 2.1 million people of Vietnamese ancestry in 2017. Many came after the former, U.S.-supported South Vietnam lost to the Communist north in the 1970s.

美国人口普查局估计，2017年美国大约有210万越南人。许多人于上世纪70年代美国支持的南越败给北越之后来到了美国。

Song Seng Wun is an economist with CIMB in Singapore. He said, "There are [Vietnamese] residents in the U.S. itself, so that alone would be good enough for airline connections if they see fit to."

Song Seng Wun 是新加坡联昌国际银行的经济学家。他说：“美国本地就有越南居民，如果他们认为合适，单此一项就能满足航线连接的需求。”

The Nhan Dan website noted that about 30,000 Vietnamese students travel to the United States each year. And there will be more travelers as trade between the two countries expands.

越南人民报网站指出，每年约有3万名越南学生前往美国。随着两国贸易扩大，将会有更多的乘客。

In the past, American carriers, such as United Airlines and Delta Airlines, operated direct flights to Vietnam. But they suspended those flights because of cost consideration.

过去，美国联航和达美航空等美国航空公司有直飞越南的航班，但是他们出于成本考虑停飞了这些航班。

In addition to the national carrier Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air and Bamboo Airways have also included flights to the U.S. in their plans. However, the companies will need to add airplanes that can fly non-stop to the U.S.

除了越南航空这家国家航空公司，越捷航空(VIetjet)和越竹航空(Bamboo Airways)也计划开通直飞美国的航班。然而，这些公司需要添置能够不停靠直飞美国的飞机。

I’m Jonathan Evans.

乔纳森·埃文斯报道。