Thai Airways (THAI) is closely monitoring any fall-out from the economic situation in Europe and China and is ready to make rapid adjustments to its flight services to soften any impact.
THAI president Charamporn Jotikasthira said the airline was especially keeping a close eye on the economic situation in China because Chinese travellers have become a mainstay of tourism in Thailand.
He said there could be an impact on travel in the second half of this year. However, there were no signs yet that numbers were falling as most air tickets are booked in advance.
Even if there was an impact, THAI could reduce its flights right away, just as it had done with its South Korea schedule after the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome scare broke out there, he said.
Mr Charamporn said the national carrier had suffered a foreign exchange loss in the second quarter of this year due to the euro's appreciation, and the loss wiped out THAI's foreign exchange profit of 9 billion baht in the first quarter. Euro money dominated THAI's business, he said.
Mr Charamporn also said the cabin factor of THAI stood at 67% in the second quarter, rising 6-7% year-on-year, but profit per seat dropped due to fierce competition.
He expected the cabin factor to be at 75% throughout this year, lower than the earlier set target of 80%.