Thai AirAsia nudges authorities to open up
Thailand may lose its reputation as a regional aviation hub if the government cannot speed up reopening the country to tourism and strengthen the competitiveness of airlines, according to Thai AirAsia (TAA). "After facing the pandemic for a year, the key factors that can strengthen Thai tourism are reopening borders and financial aid such as soft loans to help airlines maintain their business and save jobs," said Santisuk Klongchaiya, CE of TAA. Seven local airlines including TAA have requested a 14b baht soft loan since March 2020. "If the plan to welcome foreigners is not ready, Thailand may lose those potential tourists to other competitors that have prepared to attract them with a practical scheme," he said. Santisuk said international airlines may shift their direct flights to other countries such as Vietnam instead of Thailand. TAA reported 16.2b baht in total revenue in 2020, down by 61% year-on-year, while the airline carried 9.49m passengers last year, drop by 57%. He said its passenger goal this year remains the same as last year -- 9.4m. Of that amount, 15% is the international market as the airline expects to resume international flights by Q4.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2021-03-05/unaligned/thai-airasia-nudges-authorities-to-open-up
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Thai AirAsia nudges authorities to open up
Thailand may lose its reputation as a regional aviation hub if the government cannot speed up reopening the country to tourism and strengthen the competitiveness of airlines, according to Thai AirAsia (TAA). "After facing the pandemic for a year, the key factors that can strengthen Thai tourism are reopening borders and financial aid such as soft loans to help airlines maintain their business and save jobs," said Santisuk Klongchaiya, CE of TAA. Seven local airlines including TAA have requested a 14b baht soft loan since March 2020. "If the plan to welcome foreigners is not ready, Thailand may lose those potential tourists to other competitors that have prepared to attract them with a practical scheme," he said. Santisuk said international airlines may shift their direct flights to other countries such as Vietnam instead of Thailand. TAA reported 16.2b baht in total revenue in 2020, down by 61% year-on-year, while the airline carried 9.49m passengers last year, drop by 57%. He said its passenger goal this year remains the same as last year -- 9.4m. Of that amount, 15% is the international market as the airline expects to resume international flights by Q4.<br/>
