Vietnamese tax authorities have moved to temporarily suspend the exit of Bamboo Airways beneficial owner Lê Thái Sâm after the carrier’s tax debt climbed to more than VND 440.7 billion. The action follows a public notice from Gia Lai tax authorities and comes as the airline’s operating fleet has shrunk to three aircraft, with repeated cancellations, refund requests and fresh route cuts disrupting its network.
A separate notice earlier in the year targeted chief executive Trương Phương Thành over another tax-debt case, with liabilities listed at more than VND 431.6 billion. Bamboo Airways is also behind on social insurance payments for 663 workers, with arrears exceeding VND 44.7 billion and additional sums owed for a foreign employee.
Operational pressure has deepened in parallel. Reports in late July showed one Airbus A321, registration VN-A227, operating six sectors in a single day with delays of two to three hours, underscoring the airline’s narrowed schedule. Bamboo Airways has also informed partners that it will suspend Hanoi-Lijiang charter flights from 1 August after revising its operating plan, while several domestic routes were no longer visible in August booking systems.