Really Cool Airlines to announce routes by June and launch by year end: CEO
A new carrier, Really Cool Airlines, will announce its flight routes by the end of June and begin operations by the end of the year, its CEO, Patee Sarasin, said on Tuesday.
The carrier will focus on international flights, Patee said.
He said the carrier will help Thailand's aviation industry recover and will offer enhanced safety.
The airline's slogan is "We Fly the Future” and it will be midway between a luxury and budget carrier, Patee said. "We are excited and ready to introduce Really Cool Airlines to give an extraordinary experience to passengers," he added.
Patee said the new carrier will surpass previous standards.
Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt welcomed news about a new Thai carrier, saying airlines have played an important role in developing smart cities.
"Apart from giving extraordinary experience to passengers, this airline will help boost the recovery of Thai tourism," Chadchart said.
Patee had been CEO of Thai low-cost airline Nok Air. He became a recognised face due to his participation in many advertisements launched by Nok Air.
Patee resigned from Nok Air on December 22, 2017.
In his autobiography, "Smiling Through Turbulence", he said he had resigned from Nok Air after Indonesia's largest airline. Lion Airline, decided to operate a low-cost airline in Thailand.
He said Nok Air was affected by the competition to gain market share in Southeast Asia between Thai Lion Air and Malaysian airline AirAsia.
"I knew Lion Air co-founder Rusdi Kirana for a long time, and he wanted to set up an airline in Thailand," Patee says in his autobiography. "We should talk about the possibility of becoming partners, but it turned out to be a big mistake.”
Nok Air suffered losses as Lion Air’s attempt to compete with AirAsia backfired.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand targets attracting 30 million foreign tourists this year, about 80% of the 39 million that arrived during the pre-Covid-19 year of 2019.
Thailand must increase the number of airlines and flights serving in the country to reach this target, the agency said.
