Last Thursday, images from an alleged VietJet Air promotional photo shoot featuring a number of lingerie-clad models were leaked and quickly went viral, causing an Internet firestorm, reports Tuoi Tre.
The leak originated from model, Ngoc Trinh’s Facebook page where she posted the photos and wrote that she had, “Just finished shooting promo photos for VietJet Air for 12 hours nonstop from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm.”
The images, a mixture of ad-quality photos and slefies taken on Trinh’s cell phone, have been labeled as “uncensored” and “unofficial” by the airline which denied responsibility for the leak.
A statement from the Hanoi-based carrier said that photos were, “…leaked from a test shooting under a contract between VietJet Air and Venus and are not the official promotional photos of VietJet Air,” while Trinh’s personal photos, which have subsequently been removed, were, “taken by smartphones and are not shot by VietJet Air” and “leaked beyond VietJet Air intention and control.”
This isn’t the first time the airline has used sex to sell plane tickets. After being fined VND20 million for in-flight bikini shows in 2012, the budget airline brought back the performances to celebrate its new route from HCMC to Singapore in May.
Perhaps the VietJet marketing department should come up with a way to promote their airline without relying on models wearing skimpy clothing.