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A Vietnamese airline has been shamed for using bikini-clad models in what looks like a promotional PR stunt. 

The photographs, which feature models posing provocatively, wearing skimpy outfits in the airline's colours, were leaked on Facebook last week.

The models are seen inside the cabin opening the overhead lockers, walking down the aircraft steps and waving sparklers in the images which roused an angry reaction on social networking sites.

Be careful when opening the overhead lockers: The revealing snaps have sparked an outrage online

Criticism came after Ngoc Trinh, a lingerie model well-known in Vietnam, posted the images, which were allegedly shot to serve VietJet Air's next promotional campaign.  

Trinh captioned her photo album: 'Just finished shooting promo photos for VietJet Air for 12 hours nonstop from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm.'

The photos went viral on Facebook and attracted negative reviews, with many criticising the airline objectifying women in using them to promote their brand.

VietJet Air claimed that photos of models in airline colours were not part of an official advertising campaign

They were later removed from Trinh's Facebook page around Friday.

An executive of the airline denied that the photos were official photos of the carrier's next advertising campaign. Vu Pham Nguyen Tung, the carrier's development director, said the photos were taken during a trial photo shooting for VietJet Air. 

'We have yet to decide if we will use these photos or not,' he told Thanh Nien News, denying that the leakage of the photos was just a 'PR ploy' employed by VietJet Air.

Criticism came after the images, which were allegedly shot for a promotional campaign, were leaked

In 2012, VietJet Air was fined £611 by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam for having its flight attendants perform a Hawaii dance in bikinis on its inauguration flight between Ho Chi Minh City and the coastal resort town of Nha Trang. 

Last May it used bikini dancers to celebrate the launch of HCMC-Singapore route. 

But it's not the first carrier to call upon scantily-clad females to promote their wares, Irish airline RyanAir publishes a calendar featuring half-naked cabin crew every year.