THAI banks on South Korea, China, Japan
Thai Airways International, the national carrier, is working against time to strengthen its financial performance over the rest of the year by focusing more on existing money-spinning destinations in Asia, as it battles to recover from last year's loss of
This effort includes maximising the key markets of South Korea, China and Japan via a core strategy of increasing the number of flights and capacity.
THAI will also introduce new destinations, in cooperation with THAI Smile, the airline’s sub-brand, while more pricing flexibility from season to season will be in focus with a view to increasing yields and filling capacity.
Pandit Chanapai, THAI’s executive vice president commercial, yesterday said key Asian markets offered great potential to provide healthy sales at a time when the European market is stagnant due the euro zone’s financial troubles.
Furthermore, the outlook for next year is clear, in that Asia will outgrow Europe, he said. Most importantly, flying in Asia can save on operating costs, especially for fuel, which makes up 40 per cent of the total.
At present, the intercontinental market accounts for 54 per cent of THAI’s seating, followed by 41-42 per cent from the regional market and the rest from domestic operations. However, the regional market contributes more than 50 per cent of the carrier’s overall sales, said the executive.
The Bangkok-Sapporo route is a good example of the company’s plan. On Wednesday, THAI announced its first flight to the Japanese destination, which will take place on October 30.
Using an Airbus A330-300, there will initially be three flights per week. The number of flights will increase to four per week from December 30.
THAI will be the first non-Japanese airline to fly directly to Sapporo, the capital city of Hokkaido, and the development is expected to bolster trade and tourism between Japan and Thailand. The carrier claims to have 95-per-cent advanced booking on the new route.
THAI also has 21 weekly flights from Bangkok to Narita, 17 to Osaka, 10 to Nagoya, and seven each to Haneda and Fukuoka.
The company’s total number of weekly flights to Japan, including Bangkok-Sapporo, will be 65. This is expected to increase to 70 by the middle of next year after the launch of another new destination.
THAI president Sorajak Kasemsuwan said that if demand rose further, the carrier would increase the number of flights to Japan and also use bigger aircraft.
It is also looking for new destinations such as Hiroshima, Sendai and Nagasaki to add to its network, he said.
"It is time to find ways to strengthen our financial performance before the year ends. This has been my first priority since taking office almost 20 days ago," he added.
The airline’s average passenger-load factor for the year to date is slightly over 70 per cent, but this is expected to rise to 75 per cent for the whole year, said Sorajak.
