European routes to maintain sales revenue
National carrier confident of maintaining cabin factor despite competition
Thai Airways International has high hopes of maintaining its sales revenue from a 70-per-cent cabin factor in long-haul routes to Europe next year despite the ongoing financial crisis in the euro zone and high competition from rival airlines.
“Though the current fourth quarter is the peak period for the airline business, the company is seeing only a 70-per-cent cabin factor, down from 74 per cent in the same period last year,” Pandit Channapai, executive vice president for commercial operations, said yesterday.
He said this was mainly a result of high competition among rival airlines that fly to Europe with Airbus A380 superjumbos. This type of aircraft enables airlines to carry up to 800 passengers in one flight as well as offer better prices than airlines operating older models.
Meanwhile, passenger demand from this market has also decreased because of the economic slowdown in the euro zone. Pandit said THAI was highly concerned about these factors because European destinations were a crucial market for the airline. It operates twice-daily flights from Bangkok to London as well as to Frankfurt, and 10 flights a week from to Paris.
THAI is considering revising its European routes next year to maintain its average cabin factor at 70 per cent, while it plans to add more flights within the Asia-Pacific region.
The national airline is also focusing on adding new direct flights to low-competition destinations in Europe. For instance, next month it plans to introduce direct flights to Brussels in a bid to boost its sales in the European market.
This thrice-a-week route to Brussels will be operated on Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, offering 30 business-class seats and 262 in economy class. Currently, about 12-15 per cent of passengers from Belgium and neighbouring countries, especially those wanting to travel to Australia and Southeast Asia countries, make connections in Frankfurt.
Flight reservations started in July, and the seating capacity on this route has reached 80 per cent for the first flight to Brussels on November 17.
The national carrier expects to see a 70-per-cent load factor on this route and expects to break even within its first year of operation.
