Thai Lion Air to launch new hub at Suvarnabhumi

Thai Lion Air (TLA) intends to launch a new hub for international flights from Suvarnabhumi airport, with the first route to Jakarta set to launch before Songkran and the introduction of other overseas destinations by the end of the second quarter. The airline uses Don Mueang airport as its hub for domestic flights, as do most local low-cost airlines, and plans to continue to do so for routes within Thailand. As TLA has an international cargo service at Suvarnabhumi, there was an opportunity to carry both cargo and passengers from connecting cross-border flights, said Nuntaporn Komonsittivate, TLA's head of commercial operations. TLA's fleet has been reduced from 30 aircraft in 2019 to today's 11, of which two Airbus A330s are currently stationed at Suvarnabhumi to serve the cargo business, which saw 20-30% growth during the pandemic. Nuntaporn said the Jakarta route will start with one flight per week, to see what demand is like. The additional routes in the second half of this year could be Singapore, India or Japan, depending on the travel restrictions in each country. Besides Jakarta, flights bound for Tokyo's Narita airport might also use Suvarnabhumi as a hub, as they have to fly with the Airbus A330.<br/>