Aviation agencies put on alert for peak season

The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) and the Airports of Thailand (AoT) are being told to prepare for a surge of up to 19m air passengers in the last quarter of this year, Thailand's high tourist season. Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob, in his capacity as chairman of the Civil Aviation Commission (CAC), said the two agencies have been instructed to prepare for a surge currently being experienced in the United States and Europe after the easing of Covid-19 travel restrictions. Peak season is in Q4 when the number of international visitors will rise to up to 19 million, according to a projection by the Bank of Thailand, he said. According to the CAAT and the AoT, Thailand welcomed about 1.08m international visitors from Jan 1 to May 20, and the number of new visitors was expected to rise to 6m in Q2, he said. The number of tourists was projected to slowly grow in the third quarter, a low tourist season, before picking up again and rapidly rising in the fourth quarter, he said, citing forecasts by the two agencies. Thailand should learn from what is happening in the US and Europe to better prepare for a similar situation, he said. Massive flight delays and close to 100,000 flight cancellations have occurred in Europe since April, while at least 20,000 cancellations happened in the US in the past two to three months, he said.<br/>