TLA adopts a realistic approach
Thai Lion Air (TLA) is predicting another gloomy year for global tourism as the airline prepares for the worst possible scenario, an extended period without international tourists. "International passengers brought in much higher revenue and we long for the borders to reopen, but in reality we have to accept that precautionary measures are necessary for the country," said TLA CE Aswin Yangkirativorn. "The coronavirus vaccine may be ready, but universal access will take time." Based on the worst-case scenario, TLA's business plan for the first half of 2021 will focus on expanding its domestic networks and strengthening local demand, challenging tasks for all airlines operating in Thailand. TLA can now resume flights on 13 domestic routes, but only at 60% of the frequency of the levels seen prior to the pandemic. For example, TLA used to offer 8-9 daily flights to Chiang Mai when tourism was at its peak, but this has now been scaled back to 4-5 flights per day due to the limitations in the market, with all players competing for the same customers. In Q4, the average load factor increased to 80-85% from 70-75% in the third quarter as the high season for domestic air travel got underway.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/imagelibrary/news/hot-topics/2020-11-25/unaligned/tla-adopts-a-realistic-approach
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TLA adopts a realistic approach
Thai Lion Air (TLA) is predicting another gloomy year for global tourism as the airline prepares for the worst possible scenario, an extended period without international tourists. "International passengers brought in much higher revenue and we long for the borders to reopen, but in reality we have to accept that precautionary measures are necessary for the country," said TLA CE Aswin Yangkirativorn. "The coronavirus vaccine may be ready, but universal access will take time." Based on the worst-case scenario, TLA's business plan for the first half of 2021 will focus on expanding its domestic networks and strengthening local demand, challenging tasks for all airlines operating in Thailand. TLA can now resume flights on 13 domestic routes, but only at 60% of the frequency of the levels seen prior to the pandemic. For example, TLA used to offer 8-9 daily flights to Chiang Mai when tourism was at its peak, but this has now been scaled back to 4-5 flights per day due to the limitations in the market, with all players competing for the same customers. In Q4, the average load factor increased to 80-85% from 70-75% in the third quarter as the high season for domestic air travel got underway.<br/>
