Thai Airways president Sumeth Damrongchaitham said the airline’s board approved a new fleet plan on 26-Nov-2018 covering the acquisition of 38 new aircraft (Bangkok Post/The Nation, 27-Nov-2018).
The plan will now be passed to Thailand‘s Cabinet for approval by Dec-2018. Mr Sumeth said the carrier aims to expand its fleet from 100 to 125 aircraft in the long term, with the acquisition of new aircraft to take place over five years.
He commented: “It is necessary to increase the number of aircraft if we want to keep up with the growing market. If we fail to boost our fleet, we stand to lose 10% of the market share in the next three to five years”.
Mr Sumeth also stated: “We need to push for progress in terms of a larger fleet as soon as possible. The Cabinet will need to approve our proposal swiftly if Thai Airways is to keep up with the high competition”.
The airline is also expected to submit revised marketing and business strategies to Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak in 2018.
