Thai VietJet is to launch a three-times-a-week service between the western Indian city of Ahmedabad and Bangkok from October 1 this year, Mr. Woranate Laprabang, Chief Executive Officer of the airline said on Tuesday. Thai VietJet is a low-cost airline based out of Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok.
Addressing a virtual press conference to announce the flight, the CEO said that the airline is looking forward to increasing its network and destinations in India in the near future. He added that the airline is probably looking at three destinations in India this year and three to four destinations the following year.
The new flight is to operate between Ahmedabad and Bangkok on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays and in the return direction on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The airline was set up in 2014 and currently has a fleet of 16 Airbus 320 aircraft.
Thai VietJet’s expansion plans include connecting other cities as well. According to Laprabang, the airline is looking to scale up and add six aircraft this year and another eight aircraft in the following year as a part of its international expansion. He added that the airline is looking to expand in Indo-China, the Association of South East Asian region, and in North Asia to countries like Korea, Japan, and China. The airline expects to have a fleet of 50 aircraft by 2026.
Thai VietJet’s expansion plans include connecting other cities as well. According to Laprabang, the airline is looking to scale up and add six aircraft this year and another eight aircraft in the following year as a part of its international expansion. He added that the airline is looking to expand in Indo-China, the Association of South East Asian region, and in North Asia to countries like Korea, Japan, and China. The airline expects to have a fleet of 50 aircraft by 2026.
Mr. Pinyot Pibulsonggram, Director Commercial, Thai VietJet added that the airline will be the first to fly direct on this route although in the past there have been some airlines, including some Indian low-cost airlines which operated on the route.
The airline offers three classes of fares — eco in which the passenger is only allowed a 7kg baggage allowance as part of the ticket. Meals are extra. The next fare class is Deluxe in which a passenger gets 20 kg checked-in baggage and 7 kg carry-on baggage apart from free seat selection, free departure time change, and an exclusive check-in lane while in skyBOSS a passenger is allowed 30 kg checked-in baggage, 10 kg carry-on baggage and a 15 kg golf club set apart from seating in rows 1 or 2; this class also provides food and beverages. Besides, there is an exclusive fast lane check-in and free departure time change.
In response to a question on how the airline managed the COVID-19 pandemic, the CEO said that Thai VietJet was probably lucky because it is a small airline. “Not only Thai VietJet but all airlines suffered during COVID-19. We did not lay off any staff apart from those who wanted to leave themselves. We only had 11 aircraft at that time. Before COVID-19 we flew a lot of flights into China. There were a number of Chinese tourists in Thailand. When COVID-19 came we turned to domestic routes. We opened six new destinations. Our market share in Thailand jumped from number six in 2019 before COVID-19 we reached number 2 by the end of 2020 and early 2021. That is an opportunity that we grabbed during COVID-19.”
Elaborating further, the CEO said, “If you look at the history of Thai VietJet we may be the only airline to expand during COVID-19. In the last two years, we expanded our fleet from 11 to 16 aircraft, a growth of 35 to 40 percent. The staff count has gone up from 650 before COVID-19 in 2019- early 2020 to 900 today.”
However, he admitted that the going was tough for the last two years, “We got a lot of loss during that time. We have been through a very difficult stage during the past two years. But any airline which has survived till this time will survive for many years more. We are looking to be profitable and at the same time serving the people in the world,” he said.
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