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The number 13 is thought to be unlucky
by some, but for AirAsia Thailand it has
been just the opposite. In its 13th year
of operation, our affiliate has further
entrenched its position as the first
– and leading – low-cost carrier in the
country. It welcomed five new aircraft
to boost its fleet to 56, added eight new
routes to a rapidly expanding network,
and grew the number of guests carried
15% to 19.8 million. All this was achieved
while also enhancing its load factor by
three percentage points to 87% and its
aircraft utilisation to 11.9 hours from 11.7
hours in 2016.
The choice of Thailand as our first
associate in Asean was obvious. The
country – with its stunning beaches,
amazing food and beautiful smiles –
has always been and will always be a
natural tourist haven. Since catching
the imagination of travellers from China
following the 2012 release of the Chinese
blockbuster film,
Lost in Thailand
, it has
been receiving a huge influx of tourists
from this vast nation, which has not been
much affected by the government’s
crackdown on zero-dollar tours. In 2017,
Thailand continued to be the favourite
destination for Chinese holiday-makers
and constituted the largest contingent of
foreign arrivals to Thailand, at 9.8 million
visitors, an increase of 12% from the
number in 2016.
Ex-China, Thailand was the most popular
tourist destination in Asia-Pacific, and
the ninth most popular in the world in
2017, according to the World Tourism
Organization.
The challenge AirAsia Thailand faces is
not, therefore, to do with demand. It is
more with differentiating itself in a market
that is becoming increasingly competitive.
This it achieves admirably by continuously
reinforcing the quality of its service
and on-time performance (OTP) while
maintaining the highest level of safety
and, of course, one of the most affordable
fares.
In September, AirAsia Thailand rolled
out our Red Carpet in several airports –
Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Udon
Thani. Guests who opt for this ancillary
service are given the VIP treatment, with
attractive privileges such as a special
check-in counter, pre-flight snacks and
drinks at the airport lounge, priority
boarding and priority baggage claim.
The airline’s OTP, meanwhile, was
maintained at a high of 83%. And its safety
performance, consistently of the highest
standard, was duly recognised when, in
April, AirAsia Thailand was the first low-
cost airline in the country to have its Air
Operator’s Certificate (AOC) re-certified
by the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand
(CAAT). CAAT’s evaluation – of all local
airlines – was part of an overriding effort
to lift the red flag that had been imposed
on the country’s aviation industry by the
International Civil Aviation Organization
(ICAO) in June 2015.
13Yearsand
GettingStronger
AIRCRAFT UTILISATION
HOURS
11.9
REVENUE
THB 35.93
BILLION
NET PROFIT
THB 2.69
BILLION
[ ]
AirAsia Group Berhad
BUSINESS REVIEW
115