On the morning of October 1st, 2020, flight VN211 departing from Noi Bai to Tan Son Nhat airport marked a special milestone in the career of Capt. Nguyen Thai Trung, Executive Vice President of Vietnam Airlines. Capt. Trung has 40 years of experience in the aviation industry, and the flight date coincided with his 60th birthday. Heritage Fashion sat down with the veteran pilot.

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung and his daughter, a chief purser for Vietnam Airlines

Interviewer: How do you feel about welcoming your 60th birthday in the cockpit?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: The two words most likely to depict my feelings right now are: emotional and happy.

Interviewer: The cockpit is the pilot’s office. On the day that you’ll eventually say goodbye to this “sky-view office,” how much will you miss it?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: If the day comes when I have to say goodbye to the captain’s seat where I have spent nearly my whole life, that moment would be extremely emotional. The word “miss” alone will not be enough to express how I would feel.

Interviewer: With nearly 40 years in this profession, which flight of yours is the most memorable?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: Each flight is memorable. Nevertheless, the most

memorable was the one carrying the two top leaders of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Communist Party of Cuba, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and First Secretary Raul Castro on the same flight from Havana to Santiago De Cuba. The mission had a lot of pressure but was important, honorable

and proud.

Interviewer: You started your pilot career very early and became one of the very first captains, so do you think this profession chose you or vice versa?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: I must have been destined to become a pilot and I never once had any other choices.

Interviewer: From your point of view, what is the key to success in this profession: knowledge, skills, discipline, decisiveness, or flexibility?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: All of the elements you mentioned. Actually, those elements are must-haves in any job, but particularly for pilots, as standards and discipline are set even higher. If a flight ends well, passengers will thank the flight crew and choose that airline for their next flights. But if problems happen, the captain is the one responsible for the safety, even the lives of people present in the aircraft. Whether customers put their trust in an airline depends significantly on the flight crew in general and the experience of the pilots in particular.

Interviewer: To summarize your 40-year journey with Vietnam Airlines, what would you say?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: I would say, I am PROUD.

Interviewer: Are there any differences between pilots of your generation and those of the present?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: There are general standards and regulations for pilots so I barely see any differences. If there is, it would only be that pilots of the new generation are more receptive to modern technologies.

Interviewer: Right now, what would you like to share with your fellow Vietnam Airlines pilots?

EVP Nguyen Thai Trung: The world is changing, so if you stop, it means that you accept being left behind. Whether you chose the pilot career because of your passion or any other reason, you are responsible for the safety of many families, including yours. “Study, study more, study forever” until you reach the same position as I am today, looking back on your journey with no regrets. One particular saying that I really like is: “There are no good pilots, only old ones”- it is a pilot’s happiness!