Thai Airways has extended the suspension of its international flights until September, pointing at ongoing immigration restrictions and government measures.
Thai Airways has not been flying internationally for several months. It looks like it will be a while before Thailand’s planes return to the sky.
“We appreciate the continuous disruption and inconvenience this may cause to passengers and truly apologize for this,” Thai Airways said about the flight suspensions.
Thai Airways suspended its flying back in March as Thailand closed its borders to non-residents and citizens around the same time when COVID-19 started to bite.
To understand the impact of this decision on Thai Airways, you should take into account that tourism usually accounts for one fifth of the Thai gross domestic product.
In April 2019, 3.2 million visitors flowed $ 4.7 billion into Thailand’s airlines, hotels and companies. In April 2020, no visitors tipped.
However, the problems with Thai Airways preceded the 2020 downturn. The airline’s owners, the Thai government, have long supported this. The Thai government has always made a point of keeping Thai Airways in the air at any cost.
Since the borders remain closed both in Thailand and abroad, Thai Airways has repeatedly postponed the flight closures.
Except for a few return and cargo flights, Thailand’s international fleet has remained on the ground.
Both the Thai government and airline management recognize the need to reform Thai Airways. The fleet needs to be consolidated and operating costs need to be lower.
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