After weeks of commotion over the Nok Air affair, we are waiting to see if the airline's management can, as promised, solve its problems, which have further tainted the country's battered airline industry.
Nok Air's problems made the front pages of numerous news outlets following its Feb 14 pilot strike. The work stoppage resulted in flight cancellations that stranded thousands of passengers.
The airline continued to be the feature of news stories when pilots staged a mass walk-out, not just once but twice. The problems seem severe with the likes of Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith feeling the heat.
His worries are understandable. After all, the authorities have been trying to clean up the mess in the airline industry after the country's sub-par safety standards caused the United Nations' International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO) to red-flag the country.
The impact of the ICAO ruling means that Thai-based carriers are unable to add more flights to the United States, Japan or South Korea.
To top it all off, the International Air Transport Association, a body that represents airlines from across the world, has complained of "soft spots" at the much-hyped Suvarnabhumi airport.
All this has prompted the government to realise that the country's only thriving sector in the economy -- tourism -- could be at risk if it does not take action in a timely manner.
Regulators began addressing the problem by inspecting all 41 airlines registered in Thailand, 28 of which fly international routes. Some of these airlines could lose their operating licences. While two of the airlines have reportedly been grounded, there are a few more that are facing financial constraints.
With all the problems that the airline industry is facing, it's not surprising to see how hands-on Transport Minister Arkhom is with the airlines. His ministry has voiced concern over the possibility that these issues "will impact tourism".
Without a doubt, the fiasco at Nok Air brought to light some of the company's management problems.
Nok, which was founded when marketing wizard Kanok Abhiradee was president of Thai Airways International Plc, has been plagued by problems from the very beginning.
The now estranged child of Thai Airways, which owns a 39.2% stake in Nok Air, has been going its own way ever since Mr Kanok left the company. The airline, which is supposed to be the low-cost carrier arm of Thai Airways, ended up being just an investment after Thai Airways established Thai Smile as its wholly-owned budget carrier.
With the pilot strike and resignations, the Pandora's box for Nok has opened up and information is coming to light. Though some of it is real, there are many rumours and allegations -- such as the claims that trainees are being used as pilots and that many of the pilots were working well beyond their legal flight-time limits.
While many may appreciate the hands-on approach of Transport Minister Arkhom on this issue, I have been asking myself if his involvement is part of his job description, particularly his, almost daily, defence of the airline. The job of the minister is not to micro manage these issues, but instead try to take decisive action.
If the airline breached the rules, issuing a warning is the first order. If it continues to do so or there is a consistent breach, then suspension of its operating licence is needed. Going around and convincing the public that there is nothing wrong with the airline is last thing he should be doing.
The job of the ministry is to make sure that the airlines that are operating are safe and follow the set rules and regulations, and to be frank, they should be going above and beyond the set rules.
Passengers make their own decisions when picking what airline to fly with. If airlines continue to have low safety standards or strikes or are famous for delays or cancellations, then the market will punish them.
On the other hand, being the single largest shareholder, Thai Airways needs to take a firmer stance on Nok. If they are smart, they will seek help from the second largest shareholder, Siam Commercial Bank Plc (3.44% stake).
If these two take a united stance in addressing Nok's issues they would be representing at least 42.64% of the shares. This would mean they only need to lobby 7.37% more of the shareholders to be able to take decisive action and get their way with regards to managing the airline. Otherwise, they should simply sell their stake and try to fix their own problems with the proceeds they get from the sale.
Umesh Pandey is Asia Focus editor, Bangkok Post.