Tourism minister urges Thai Airways to fix baggage delays on September 29
Thailand’s tourism minister calls for board-level action over Thai Airways’ baggage backlog, warning that delays are damaging tourism confidence.
- Tourism Minister Surasak Phancharoenworakul urged Thai Airways to fix its baggage backlog and flight delays, warning the disruption was damaging Thailand's tourism reputation.
- The minister blamed the crisis on poor management preparedness, not just flood-related staff shortages, and suspected the airline prioritized ground services for other carriers over its own passengers.
- Surasak called for the finance minister, a major shareholder, to convene the airline's board and suggested that executives unwilling to solve the problem should resign.
- He also alleged that Thai Airways failed to cooperate with other agencies, such as military personnel, who were sent to help with the baggage backlog.
Tourism and Sports Minister Surasak Phancharoenworakul urged Thai Airways to resolve its baggage backlog and flight delays on September 29, warning that the disruption was seriously damaging Thailand’s reputation and confidence in tourism. Speaking at Government House in Bangkok, Surasak called for stronger management action and intervention through the airline’s board.
Surasak said he had experienced the disruption himself after returning from Japan on a Thai Airways flight.
Surasak questions Thai Airways’ staffing priorities
Flooding had prevented some employees from reaching work, Surasak acknowledged, but he argued that Thai Airways’ lack of management preparedness was the principal reason the disruption had become so severe.
Surasak said he suspected that Thai Airways had prioritised ground-handling services for other airlines to avoid penalties under its contracts, leaving passengers on its own flights facing the most severe delays.
Suvarnabhumi Airport said the flight delays were linked to the airline’s technical and management problems, rather than weather conditions preventing flights from operating.
In a separate explanation of the disruption, Thai Airways chief executive Chai Eamsiri attributed the problems to flood-related staff shortages and the combined workload of handling both the airline’s own flights and those of customer airlines. Chai said customer airlines had also experienced baggage backlogs, although Thai Airways had been more severely affected.
Surasak alleges poor coordination with military helpers
Surasak said other agencies brought in to help had reported a lack of initiative and cooperation from Thai Airways. Military personnel sent by the Ministry of Defence to move baggage had not been provided with food or accommodation, forcing them to return to their units for meals, he alleged.
“Every agency has tried to help, but Thai Airways has not responded or cooperated well. This is not only causing inconvenience to passengers but also damaging the country’s image and reputation,” Surasak said.
Surasak calls for finance minister to convene airline board
Surasak urged the finance minister to call a meeting of Thai Airways’ board to address the disruption and its consequences. Although Thai Airways operates as a private company, the Ministry of Finance remains a major shareholder, Surasak noted.
Surasak also said executives unwilling to tackle the problems should consider resigning to make way for others prepared to take on the task.
“Executives need to be more proactive. If they think they can do nothing because their terms are nearly over, I don’t think that is acceptable. If they don’t want to do the job, they should consider their position quickly so others who want to can help improve things,” Surasak said.
Flood-related staff shortages triggered baggage backlog
The baggage backlog developed after heavy rain and flooding disrupted staff journeys to Suvarnabhumi Airport. In a September 28 update, the Tourism and Sports Ministry said some baggage handlers could not reach their shifts, forcing colleagues to work longer and leaving passengers on some flights waiting four to six hours for their luggage.
By September 29, Thai Airways said it was returning baggage from 52 flights operated on September 26–27. The airline also reported that 34 flights had been delayed on September 28.
Thai Airways has apologised to passengers and deployed additional staff and resources to sort and deliver the bags. Passengers who registered their details can have their luggage delivered to their homes or hotels, with staff contacting them to confirm the information before dispatch.
