Lao Airlines

well I'm still here... Actually, despite their dreadful safety reputation, I know of many people who haven't died on a Lao Aviation flight - kept meeting them all over Laos and Cambodia on my recent trip! The trick when flying Cambodia - Laos is to try and get on one of the code-share Vietnam Airlines flights that run alternate days. Really nice Fokker jets run this service and it's twice as quick. But in Lao Aviation's defence, it was a really convenient way to get there and I'd do it again (though probably with my fingers crossed)... ...

Lao Aviation is the Government Airline. A few years ago a shareholding was sold to a Chinese Company the name of which I cannot remember. The Lao Government made an error here in that if they had got someone like Singapore Airlines to invest in them they would have got a lot more out of it. The fleet is a varied one. For the main International flights they use modern Boeing 737s and have now got some western ATR 42 and 72 aircraft. The internal fleet is a mixture of Russian Antonov 24s. Chinese copies of these, Harbin Y7s or the small twin engined Harbin Y12. Add to this the odd ex military Mil 8 helicopter and you have quite a fleet. The main aiports ...