AirAsia Thailand is expanding its presence in India, where it currently operates 12 routes to destinations across the vast country. The new routes will be between Bangkok and Hyderabad and Phuket and Chennai, enabling travelers from two of India’s key cities to fly nonstop to Thailand, the Land of Smiles.
Expanding with low fares in India
AirAsia Thailand (AAT) is using its growing fleet of Airbus A320 Family jets to cement itself as a serious competitor in India, which is heading to become one of the world’s largest aviation markets. The low-cost carrier has restored its capacity close to pre-pandemic levels and is now actively resuming and opening routes across the Asian region.
The new service from Bangkok to Hyderabad will start on October 27, 2024, with four flights weekly, while the route from Phuket to Chennai launches on October 30 with three weekly flights. Based on similar routes, it’s probable that the airline will use a mix of Airbus A320-200s and A320neos on both services.
AAT Head of Commercial Tansita Akraritpirom said the airline has seen considerable overall growth in the international sector, partly due to positive measures by the government, such as visa-free entry, which makes travel easier and more cost-effective.
“We have seen an overwhelming response from our Indian guests, looking to explore international destinations as well as visitors from those countries coming to Thailand. AirAsia Thailand is reaffirming its commitment in the Indian market with the addition of these two routes, both of which serve strategic cities in southern India.”
Photo: M21Perfect | Shutterstock
Fleet data from ch-aviation shows that AAT has a fleet of 59 Airbus aircraft, although it lists ten as not in service. The fleet includes 44 A320-200s, 11 A320neos and four A321neos. The airline currently flys to Kolkata, Chennai, Jaipur, Kochi, Bangalore, Gaya, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Vishakhapatnam, Tiruchirappalli and Hyderabad.
AirAsia Thailand is the region’s most on-time
Today, Cirrium released its August On-time Performance report, which showed that AirAsia Thailand was the leading on-time airline in the Asia-Pacific region. In August, AAT had 78.98% of its flights arrive on time, ahead of Vietnam Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Philippine Airlines and Air New Zealand.
AirAsia Thailand CEO Santisuk Klongchaiya said the airline wants to give punctual passengers the honor and appreciation they deserve. He noted that punctuality is an acknowledged strength of AirAsia Thailand, named the Most On-Time Airline in Thailand in 2022 and 2023. He added that:
“The biggest honor definitely goes to our dear guests who have been giving all their cooperation and support to our on-time endeavor. This commercial represents our sincere thanks to all involved.”
This is not an easy feat to achieve, as, in addition to managing their own operations, airlines have to contend with bad weather, air traffic control delays, ground delays and passengers who don’t get to the gate on time. In an outstanding coincidence, today AirAsia Thailand launched a new national advertising campaign entitled “Thank You for Being Punctual.”
The video commercial was produced to express the airline’s appreciation for everyone who is punctual, highlighting that those who strive to regularly arrive on time are rarely given credit. The campaign is also a reinforcement of the carrier’s dedication to operating on time while keeping to the high safety standards that aviation demands.