AirAsia Thailand expands domestic network to 20 routes

BANGKOK – AirAsia has further expanded its network in Thailand to 20 routes this month in a bid to promote domestic tourism there.

The low-cost carrier said starting this month, the airline added routes from Don Mueang Airport to Phitsanulok, Nan, Loei, Sakon Nakhon, Surat Thani, Krabi, and Trang along with regional connections Chiang Mai-Hua Hin (starting October 15) and Chiang Mai-Phuket (starting October 16). 

“These are in addition to the 11 routes brought back into operation earlier in September, bringing the total routes for AirAsia Thailand to 20 at present,” it said in a statement.

AirAsia Thailand chief executive officer Santisuk Klongchaiya said the additional routes are in support of the Thai government’s policies to promote domestic tourism with improved health and safety measures. 

“The support should be a boon to the overall economy and help spread revenue generation opportunities across the nation. Thai AirAsia has expressed its full commitment to back these policies by expanding its domestic service and increasing the frequency of flights on high demand routes,” he said in the same statement.

Santisuk said the airline saw an encouraging response across all of its routes in September, achieving a load factor average of 75% to 80%.

“It goes up to 90% to 95% over the weekends especially for flights to and from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, and Hat Yai,” he said.

Santisuk believes tourism industry operators will begin to see a stronger recovery during the final quarter of this year as guests are getting more familiar with the different travel requirements of each province.

“We understand that everyone misses travelling and AirAsia also misses serving travellers. 

“We are constantly monitoring the situation and readying ourselves to return to full service.  At present, 100% of AirAsia staff have been vaccinated against Covid-19 and we perform regular virus screenings so that we may operate with confidence to provide the highest safety assurance to both our guests and employees. 

“We will continue to come up with exciting promotions while maintaining our core strengths of on-time service and an expansive network of destinations,” he said.

The statement said AirAsia is nonetheless maintaining its highest health and safety standards in the prevention of the spread of Covid-19. 

Reducing contact throughout its service, AirAsia is promoting the use of the digital health pass provided by the Mor Prom application, which displays vaccination records and Covid-19 test results. 

Moreover, the airline is working closely with the Public Health Ministry and Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand to develop new service standards to provide passengers peace of mind. – Bernama, October 1, 2021