Newcomer Ezy Airlines now plans to begin flights on the currently unserviced Hat Yai-Betong route late next year, having pushed back the starting date.
Chatchavee Sakornvisai, senior director of business development and international liaison, said on Monday that Ezy Airlines plans to use Hat Yai airport as a base and fly to Betong by the third quarter of 2025. It will use a 12-seat propeller-driven aircraft, according to the Government Public Relations Department.
The air service would cut travel time between Betong district in Yala and Hat Yai district in Songkhla from about four hours by road to about 40 minutes by plane, Mr Chatchavee said.
Betong airport has had no regular flights since Nok Air ceased flying there in 2022, declaring the route unprofitable due to low demand and high operating costs.
Ezy Airlines' announcement it will not begin flights there until late next year highlights the problems operators have in servicing the Betong route. The airline had earlier posted on its website in February saying that Betong was one of four airports it stood ready to service from Hat Yai this year.
The airport was built to serve only small planes and handle up to 876,000 passengers a year. It was opened in 2022 with a fanfare launch by then-prime minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and is now just another airport in Thailand without regular air services.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin visited Betong in February, when Ezy Airlines promised to fly there and link it with the southern commercial hub of Hat Yai.
Ezy Airlines (formerly known as Landarch Airlines).