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Thai Airways Closes Thai Smile After THB 20.9 Billion in Losses of 12 Years of Service

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Thai Airways International (THAI) has formally dissolved Thai Smile Airways—its low-cost subsidiary. 

On 5 June, the company notified the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), confirming completion of all legal procedures to dissolve Thai Smile Airways Co., Ltd., in which it held a 99.99 percent stake, according to a report from Thai Airways International Public Company Limited.

This ends more than 12 years of continuous financial losses exceeding THB 20.9 billion (USD 641.25 million) and a negative shareholder equity of nearly THB 9.7 billion (USD 297.61 million).

The decision to close Thai Smile was approved at a company meeting on 8 May. The official paperwork to make the closure legal was completed on the same day with the government’s business department.

Regarding the closure, Thai Airways reassured that it would not affect its ongoing operations and that the legal liquidation process would proceed as planned.

Thai Smile, was approved by Thai Airways President Piyasvasti Amranand to launch its first flight on 2014 after establishing one year on October 2013.

Thai Smile was first established in October 2013, after the government approved it in September that year. The airline started with THB 1.8 billion (USD 55.2 million) in capital and was fully owned by Thai Airways. Its first flight took off in April 2014, serving 10 domestic routes from Suvarnabhumi Airport. The last flight was from Hat Yai to Bangkok, in December 2023.

This subsidiary airline became Thai Airways’ most costly venture, reporting financial losses every year for the past 12 years. In recent years, the annual losses were 3.79 billion baht (about 116 million USD) in 2021, 4.25 billion baht (approximately 130 million USD) in 2022, and 940 million baht (around 29 million USD) in 2023.

Total losses surpassed THB 20.929 billion, while shareholders’ equity fell into a deficit of THB 9.676 billion. The persistent losses led to the decision to shut down Thai Smile.

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