VOA慢速英語(yǔ)：越南獲準(zhǔn)開(kāi)通直飛美國(guó)航班

Vietnam Airlines Can Now Fly Directly to US

越南獲準(zhǔn)開(kāi)通直飛美國(guó)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.

美國(guó)官員上周決定允許越南客機(jī)直飛美國(guó)。該決定被視為這個(gè)東南亞國(guó)家獲得國(guó)際認(rèn)可的另一個(gè)標(biāo)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."

美國(guó)聯(lián)邦航空管理局(FAA)于2月14日宣布授予越南“一類(lèi)”評(píng)級(jí)。該評(píng)級(jí)意味著越南公司符合國(guó)際航空安全準(zhǔn)則，越南航空公司可以獲得美國(guó)聯(lián)邦航空管理局許可直飛美國(guó)，并“攜帶美國(guó)航空公司的代碼(即航班代碼共享)。”

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.

越南人民報(bào)(Nhan Dan)新聞網(wǎng)站報(bào)道稱(chēng)，越南官員于2012年開(kāi)始朝著這個(gè)目標(biāo)努力。該網(wǎng)站稱(chēng)，他們開(kāi)始著手解決一年之后美國(guó)聯(lián)邦航空管理局發(fā)現(xiàn)的49個(gè)安全問(wèn)題。

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.

美國(guó)聯(lián)邦航空管理局表示他們對(duì)越南的“一類(lèi)”評(píng)級(jí)是基于2018年8月的一項(xiàng)評(píng)估。為了保持這個(gè)評(píng)級(jí)，越南必須遵守飛機(jī)運(yùn)營(yíng)和維護(hù)的國(guó)際安全標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。

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."

亞當(dāng)·麥卡蒂(Adam McCarthy)是湄公河經(jīng)濟(jì)的首席經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家，這是一家位于河南的開(kāi)發(fā)咨詢(xún)服務(wù)公司。他指出：“這是緩慢而漸進(jìn)地將越南帶入國(guó)際社會(huì)。”

Bigger economy, more fliers

經(jīng)濟(jì)更強(qiáng)，飛機(jī)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.

上個(gè)月，越南正式加入由11個(gè)國(guó)家簽署的《全面與進(jìn)步跨太平洋伙伴關(guān)系協(xié)定》。該貿(mào)易協(xié)定約占世界經(jīng)濟(jì)的13.5%。預(yù)計(jì)歐盟也將會(huì)與越南談判貿(mào)易協(xié)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.

預(yù)計(jì)這些發(fā)展將會(huì)給越南經(jīng)濟(jì)帶來(lái)額外投資。自2012年以來(lái)，外國(guó)投資推動(dòng)越南經(jīng)濟(jì)年增長(zhǎng)率達(dá)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.

波士頓咨詢(xún)集團(tuán)預(yù)計(jì)，到明年這些增長(zhǎng)將會(huì)使該國(guó)的中產(chǎn)階級(jí)擴(kuò)大到占該國(guó)9300萬(wàn)人口的1/3左右。越南人開(kāi)始將他們一些新的財(cái)富花在機(jī)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，越南發(fā)送了9400萬(wàn)飛機(jī)乘客，其中包括1300萬(wàn)外國(guó)人，比前一年的數(shù)字高出了16%。國(guó)際航空運(yùn)輸協(xié)會(huì)預(yù)計(jì)，到2035年，該國(guó)將會(huì)成為全球增長(zhǎng)第五快的航空市場(chǎng)。

Returnees, students and business travelers

海歸、學(xué)生和商務(wù)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.

美國(guó)人口普查局估計(jì)，2017年美國(guó)大約有210萬(wàn)越南人。許多人于上世紀(jì)70年代美國(guó)支持的南越敗給北越之后來(lái)到了美國(guó)。

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 是新加坡聯(lián)昌國(guó)際銀行的經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家。他說(shuō)：“美國(guó)本地就有越南居民，如果他們認(rèn)為合適，單此一項(xiàng)就能滿足航線連接的需求。”

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.

越南人民報(bào)網(wǎng)站指出，每年約有3萬(wàn)名越南學(xué)生前往美國(guó)。隨著兩國(guó)貿(mào)易擴(kuò)大，將會(huì)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.

過(guò)去，美國(guó)聯(lián)航和達(dá)美航空等美國(guó)航空公司有直飛越南的航班，但是他們出于成本考慮停飛了這些航班。

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.

除了越南航空這家國(guó)家航空公司，越捷航空(VIetjet)和越竹航空(Bamboo Airways)也計(jì)劃開(kāi)通直飛美國(guó)的航班。然而，這些公司需要添置能夠不停靠直飛美國(guó)的飛機(jī)。

I’m Jonathan Evans.

喬納森·埃文斯報(bào)道。