Outbreak reduces travel demand in first quarter
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published : 19 May 2021 at 06:39
Airlines faced another setback in the first quarter as the continued pandemic stunted travel demand.
Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth, president of Bangkok Airways, said the airline adjusted flight frequencies to meet passenger demand during the new wave, which caused the number of domestic flights to drop 85.6% year-on-year.
The airline closed the first quarter with revenue of 1.36 billion baht, a sharp decrease of 78.8% year-on-year, while the average load factor stood at 58.8% with 151,900 passengers, down 88.5%.
Bangkok Airways posted a net loss of 757 million baht, compared with a loss of 339 million in the same period last year.
Bangkok soaks up Covid losses
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Bangkok 17 May 2021: Bangkok Airways supports the Fruit Management Project initiated by Thailand’s Department of Internal Trade by allowing passengers a 25 kg free allowance to transport local fruit on flights effective 15 May.
The offer remains valid until 31 December 2021, and while at
present very few passengers are travelling on domestic routes due to Covid-19
restrictions, there are hopes that travel within the country will pick up again
by the third and fourth quarter.
Eligible local fruits are Mangosteen, Rambutan and Longan. Durian is not included. Free transport depends on the fruit being packed in a box provided by the Department of Internal Trade (DIT) and sealed according to the air transport regulations.
BANGKOK, 17 May 2021: Bangkok Airways will resume direct services from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport to four destinations in Thailand effective this week and on 1 June.
Services resume to Chiang Mai and Phuket starting from 15 May, while the airline will resume flights to Sukhothai and Lampang on 1 June.
Even with the changes, the airline is offering just a fraction of the flights that were scheduled prior to the outbreak of Covid-19 in February 2020. International flights are cancelled, and a popular destination like Samu island in Thailand is down from 10 flights daily in early 2020 to a single daily flight at present.
Five domestic routes
By Greg Waldron2021-05-17T03:17:00+01:00
Bangkok Airways saw its first quarter operating loss widen to B677 million ($21.5 million) from B284 million a year ago, as the coronavirus pandemic continued its relentless pressure on Thailand tourism.
Revenues dived 78.8% to B1.4 billion in the three months ended 31 March, while net losses ballooned to B756 million from B338 million, according to the airline’s results statement.
Source: Max Kingsley-Jones / FightGlobal
An ATR 72-600 operated by Bangkok Airways.
The airline states that Covid-19 is an “unprecedented crisis” for Thailand’s Tourism economy, despite initiatives by the government to relax restrictions for travelers flying for business, medical treatments, or special tourist visas. It noted that tourism arrivals are down 99.7% from a year earlier.
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