Following the successful launch of its freight and passenger service to Phnom Penh in February, the airline says it wants to bump up its twice weekly service to five. And by the end of the year, airline bosses say they will be in a position to decide on whether or not to fly to Rangoon (Yangon).
Vietnam Airlines Cargo director of planning Hoang Manh Tuan said the company was continuing its plans to make its Tanson Nhat Airport, Ho Chi Minh City, hub the gateway to Indochina and the sub-Mekong region.
"Indochina, and in particular Cambodia are very promising," Tuan said. "Because of its geographical position, it is very convenient to use Vietnam as a gateway to the Cambodian market. It is quite difficult to go to some quite stable markets like Singapore or Hong Kong, but to prepare for future development you have to look for new markets.
"We plan to, in Cambodia in particular, be one of the best carriers in terms of cargo transport. When people want to send cargo to Cambodia they know we can do something."
The carrier's hopes for Cambodia are such that the company is considering playing a virtual integrator role for the war-ravaged nation, investing in cargo facilities and infrastructure.
"We have plans to look further by setting up things besides our freight service - like trucking to Ho Chi Minh City. We are even looking at the possibility of investing a little in a cargo handling facility in Phnom Penh," Tuan said.
Volume to the Cambodian capital since the service began earlier this year has reached 30 tonnes per month. With the introduction of a five-times-weekly service Tuan hopes that figure will be boosted to 70 tonnes a month.
"Don't forget that it is a very new market so 60 to 70 tonnes is quite good. Just one year ago there was nothing going there."
Cambodia is proving a lucrative market for the airline, even though a few years ago it was considered an economic basket case. Last July's election and the subsequent dissolution of the rebel Khmer Rouge force brought some semblance of stability back to the country's fragile democracy.
Now Vietnam Airlines Cargo is carrying garments, seafood and craftwork from Phnom Penh to markets in Vietnam and, in particular, Korea and Japan, and flying in cargo vital to the rebuilding of the nation's shattered economy - predominantly industrial machinery and medicine.
At the moment demand is steadily increasing but not enough to justify utilising anything other than bellyhold space in Antonov passenger aircraft. Tuan is confident that as Cambodia pulls itself from the economic doldrums, business to and from the capital will increase, however.
"Maybe we will change to bigger equipment. That will mean more capacity. If everything goes as expected, we are also looking at the possibility of linking Ho Chi Minh City and Phnom Penh by maybe Airbuses; that will give more capacity for cargo," he said.
The three years of study and preparation for the Phnom Penh service appear to be paying off. But what about the rest of the Mekong region? With landlocked Laos dependant on air and river freight for its imports while its road infrastructure is developed and international antagonism towards Rangoon abating, the carrier feels there are many more local niches it is in a prime position to exploit.
"Between the four countries - Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Burma - we have a close relationship in terms of cargo and aviation," he said.
"We intend to extend services in Cambodia - we have applied for a licence to fly to Siem Reap - and to go into Laos.
"Now we are focusing on the Burma markets. We have been studying them. We have sent experts three times to Burma. We will make some conclusions after some more visits within the next two to three months. We plan to at least come to a conclusion by the end of the year."