Thai Airways International is looking into cancelling six fight routes to four Southeast Asian nations, namely Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar and Laos.
These routes, which all emanate from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, are to Phnom Penh, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Yangon, Vientiane and Luang Prabang, The Nation reported.
The Nation quoted Sumeth Damrongchaitham, President of Thai Airways as saying that these routes are all covered by a small number of flights and have low customer capacity.
Mr Sumeth added, however, Thai Airways will assign Thai Smile Airways to cover these routes instead once the cancellation plan is finalized.
The company’s decision comes amid fierce competition as airliners reduce prices stay ahead of its rivals, according to Mr Sumeth.
He added that the company will focus on rolling out promotional campaigns until year-end while adjusting its strategies to preserve its reservation rate, although next year’s strategy remains to be seen.
“Our prices this year have been reduced to a record low, and if this strategy doesn’t work, we may take a different direction, such as seeking more partners for organization tickets, increasing online channels, or giving privileges to frequent fliers,” said Mr Sumeth, as quoted by The Nation.
The company has a total debt of over THB 2.45 billion (USD80.9 million) and losses of more than THB 20 billion (USD661 million), despite being able to reduce its debts by THB 48 billion (USD1.58 billion) over the past five years, according to The Nation.
