Vietnam Airlines Flight 815 was a scheduled Vietnam Airlines flight which crashed on final approach to Phnom Penh International Airport in Cambodia on 3 September 1997. The Soviet-built Tupolev Tu-134B-3 airliner crashed approximately 800 metres (2,600 ft; 870 yd) short of the Phnom Penh runway, killing 65 of the 66 people on board. Upon investigation, the crash was determined to have been the result of improper actions by the pilot.

Vietnam Airlines (Vietnamese: Hãng Hàng không Quốc gia Việt Nam, lit. 'Vietnam National Airlines') is the flag carrier of Vietnam. The airline was founded in 1956 and later established as a state-owned enterprise in April 1989. Vietnam Airlines is headquartered in Long Biên District, Hanoi, with hubs at Noi Bai International Airport and Tan Son Nhat International Airport. The airline flies to 64 destinations in 17 countries, excluding codeshared services.

From its inception until the early 1990s, Vietnam Airlines was a minor carrier within the aviation industry as it was hampered by a variety of factors including the socio-economic and political situation of the country. With the government's normalization of relations with the United States, the airline was able to expand, improve its products and services, and modernize its ageing fleet. In 1996, the Vietnamese government brought together 20 service companies to form Vietnam Airlines Corporation, with the airline itself as the centrepiece. In 2010, the corporation was restructured into a limited liability company and renamed Vietnam Airlines Company Limited. A seven-seat management board, members of which are appointed by the Vietnamese Prime Minister, oversees the company.As passenger transport constitutes its core activity, Vietnam Airlines plays a crucial role in the economic development of the country. It owns 100% of Vietnam Air Service Company – a regional airline in southern Vietnam and 70% of the low-cost carrier Pacific Airlines. In addition, the corporation earns revenue from airline catering and the maintenance and overhauling of aircraft through a number of its subsidiaries, including Vietnam Airlines Engineering Company and Vietnam Airlines Caterers. The company has also diversified its investments in the aircraft-leasing and airport ground-servicing industries, and is looking to manufacture aircraft components. It controls and operates a cargo division, Vietnam Airlines Cargo.

Vietnam Airlines became a member of SkyTeam in June 2010, making it the first Southeast Asian carrier to have joined that alliance. As of July 2016, the State's stake in Vietnam Airlines is 86.16%, All Nippon Airways holds 8.77%, as the parent company (ANA Holdings) has successfully purchased a cost of US$109 million, becoming a strategic shareholder of the national flag carrier.