In , Vietnam Airlines ordered four Boeing 787-8s. Twelve additional 787-8s were ordered in late 2007, some of them to be directly acquired from the company, and the rest to be purchased by the carrier's subsidiary Vietnam Aircraft Leasing Company (VALC). These new aircraft were to allow Vietnam Airlines to expand its network and replace some leased aircraft. Regarding the delays from Boeing, CEO Pham Ngoc Minh remarked in , "We are not happy about the constant delays. It affects our business plan. We expected to get our planes in 2009, then 2010, and now nobody can confirm to us which is the exact delivery date. I can be patient but it gives us a lot of headaches." In 2010 the airline switched its Boeing 787 order from the to the model, stating that 787-8s did not meet all the requirements Boeing initially promised; it is expected the airline will receive its first aircraft of the type in 2015.