National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines will launch electronic ticketing service in November, local newspaper Young People reported on Tuesday.

Under the e-ticketing, to be first applied to flights between capital Hanoi and southern Ho Chi Minh City, Master and Visa card holders can book tickets via website. With e-tickets, costs will be cut remarkably compared with paper tickets as there are no costs for printing, sending or filing.

In the world, the cost of generating an e-ticket is about one U. S. dollar, one-tenth of that of a paper ticket, according to the International Air Transport Association. The association hopes e- tickets will be popularized globally by the end of 2007, annually saving at least 3 billion dollars for the world airline industry.

Vietnam's aviation industry served over 4.9 million domestic and foreign passengers and 80,400 tons of cargoes in the first eight months this year, registering year-on-year rises of 13.1 percent and 14.4 percent, respectively, according to the country's General Statistics Office.

(Xinhua News Agency September 19, 2006)