Budget airlines boosted their share of passenger traffic through Thailand in the fiscal year ending Sept 30 to nearly 40% as major airlines saw lower volumes.
Low-cost carriers (LCCs) carried 20.34 million passengers through the country's six main airports, representing 38.8% of the total of 52.36 million passengers, according to figures compiled by Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT).
The LCC model was almost unknown in Thailand eight years ago when full-service airlines still ruled the skies.
In the previous fiscal year, LCCs put 17.64 million passengers through AoT-operated airports including Suvarnabhumi, accounting for 36.9% of 47.8 million passengers.
AoT said LCCs increased their aircraft movements in the past year by 15.12% over the previous year to 152,800.
International LCC passenger traffic jumped by 18.62% to 6.88 million, while the domestic tally rose by 13.59% to 13.45 million.
Chief executives of Thailand's two largest budget carriers _ Thai AirAsia (TAA) and Nok Air _ were not surprised by the incremental increase in LCCs' market share in Thailand.
Both TAA's Tassapon Bijleveld and Nok Air's Patee Sarasin agreed LCCs' market share will exceed 50% in the next 3-5 years.
"Aviation analysts' projections that more than half the global air traffic over five years will be on LCCs also apply here [in Thailand]," said Mr Tassapon.
Mr Patee said there is a clear trend towards greater numbers of passengers travelling on discount airlines, spurred by the LCCs' rising popularity and their adding many more aircraft, routes and flight frequencies.
"People love to travel and they always look for bargain fares, so LCCs fulfil that demand," said Mr Tassapon, who envisages TAA carrying more passengers than the flag carrier Thai Airways International (THAI) within five years.
THAI carried 18.39 million passengers in the previous calendar year, while TAA targets passenger volume of 8 million this year, rising to 10 million next year, with roughly 20% annual growth.
Mr Tassapon and Mr Patee are in consensus that full-service airlines need to realign their business models towards premium passengers _ those willing to pay more for services and amenities not offered by LCCs.
"That's the key for their survival," said Mr Tassapon. "They're better off leaving the economy class segment to LCCs."
Thailand is attracting more foreign LCCs including Spring Airlines, China's first and only low-cost carrier, which in August launched a daily non-stop flight from Shanghai to Bangkok catering to the influx of Chinese tourists to Thailand.
TAA plans to add more flights and open new international routes, while Nok Air will relaunch international services next year, probably to southern China at first.
Mr Patee said these developments will strengthen LCCs' through-Thailand market share.