Bangkok Airways outlines 2019 growth plans

Bangkok Airways is looking to further entrench its Indochina market position through new regional services, expand the number of codeshare partners, and enhance its non-airline businesses, as part of its business plan for 2019. In terms of network, the carrier began Bangkok-Nha Trang service in January. This will be followed by Chiang Mai-Krabi and Chiang Mai-Luang Prabang services in March and April. The Bangkok-Da Nang frequency will be doubled to twice-daily, and the Bangkok-Krabi route will see a fourth daily flight, all set to take place this month. Having secured four new codeshare partners in 2018, the airline is expecting to sign two to three more codesharing agreements later this year. For 2019, Bangkok Airways will add one A319 and two ATR 72-600s. Five ATR 72-500s will be phased out, leaving the carrier to operate 38 aircraft this year, a slight decline from the 40 aircraft it operated in 2018. It is setting aside US$57.1m to buy the two ATRs, acquire new spare parts, and embark on a two-year cabin refurbishment project on its Airbus A319s. Aircraft proposals from Airbus and Boeing are now being reviewed, as it gears towards fleet commonality.<br/>