Subdued tourism spending is expected this month as people remain concerned about flooding and economic uncertainties, according to Thai Lion Air.
Nuntaporn Komonsittivate, head of commercial operations at Thai Lion Air, said tourists have not yet cancelled their bookings, but many asked about the company's refund and postponement policy in case they are affected by floods and unable to travel as planned.
The ongoing natural disaster has reduced the average load factor for domestic flights in recent weeks, with a single-digit decrease in the percentage rate, though many travellers maintained their plans for the long holiday this week.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) forecasts overall spending for the long weekend at 10 billion baht from 2.99 million domestic trips.
"Our load factor dropped during the past week from 70% to around 68%, but hopefully for the remainder of the year, particularly after tropical storms have gone, we can accelerate demand through existing domestic routes and new international routes in the upcoming high season to gain 1.2 million passengers in this quarter," said Ms Nuntaporn.
She said Thai Lion Air operates with 11 aircraft comprising both Boeing B737-800 and B737-900 ER jets, with a utilisation rate for each jet at 9-10 hours per day, which means it is at its maximum level.
Even though the airline has resumed all its domestic routes, the frequency has only reached 70-80% of the level before the pandemic, said Ms Nuntaporn.
International flight expansion will have a slower pace as local demand for overseas trips requires more time to stabilise, she said.
At present, more than 90% of the load factor on flights to India and Indonesia are foreigners rather than locals.
By the end of this year, Thai Lion Air expects to have five international routes, comprising Jakarta, Mumbai, Singapore, Taipei and Kathmandu.
The airline has resumed flights to Guangzhou, Changsha and Kunming in China. Ms Nuntaporn said these routes got off to a very slow start because of the limited number of permissions granted by the Chinese aviation authority.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) held a meeting with local airlines this week to hear about possible expansion into China, with CAAT expected to relay the outcome to its counterpart in China regarding short-term expansion.
She said Thai Lion Air ranked fourth in terms of market share on domestic routes, with the top spot claimed by Thai AirAsia at 30%, followed by Nok Air.
Given surging fuel prices and stagnant purchasing power, the airline cannot quickly raise airfares to cover higher energy prices, said Ms Nuntaporn.
Thai Lion Air has to absorb those costs to maintain prices of around 1,100 baht per trip, which affects profitability, she said.
