Thai Airways set to emerge from debt with plan to double fleet

Five years after Thai Airways International filed for bankruptcy protection, the state-controlled carrier’s court-appointed debt administrator Piyasvasti Amranand is planning an aggressive international expansion. Called out of semi-retirement in 2020 by Thailand’s then Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, he was asked to devise a rescue after the carrier posted losses every year from 2013. Thai Airways aims to emerge from its debt restructuring this year and anticipates a resumption of stock trading in the second quarter. Sounder financial footing allowed the airline in 2024 to order 45 Boeing aircraft with an option for 35 more. Flight capacity has been increased. “Thai Airways’ rapid turnaround is quite astonishing,” said Federation of Savings and Credit Cooperatives of Thailand president Weera Wongsan. It invests in the airline’s bonds and stocks. “Most lenders were prepared for a much longer and more painful recovery timeframe.” The turnaround is reflected in the airline’s earnings and global surveys that show its image and service ranking improving. Thai Airways posted net income of 15.2b baht (S$605) in the first nine months of 2024, adding to a 28b baht profit in 2023. That is a recovery from a record loss of 141b baht in 2020 when a Covid-19 pandemic grounded most of its planes. <br/>