Thai Airways To Cut Workforce by Half, Posts Record $4.6Bn Net Loss

Thai Airways said on Tuesday that they plan to cut 50% of their workforce in the next few years, as the troubled flag carrier of Thailand submitted their rehabilitation plan.

The airline plans to have 13,000 to 15,000 employees on their books by 2025; they also plan to reduce their aircraft in operation from 102 to 86, as part of the rehabilitation plan that was submitted to a bankruptcy court.

It has listed following aircraft on sale.

• 2 of its 6 A380 on sale
• 10 B747-400
• 18 older B777-200 and 300 models
• 9 A340-500/600
• 1 A300-600R
• 2 B737-400

The announcement comes after the airline last month slashed 240 management positions, reducing supervisory levels from eight to five to increase efficiency.

Efforts to redesign the organisation, and revamp compensation, will bring the proportion of total flight revenues that are taken up by crew costs down from 23 percent to 13 percent, the carrier said. The airline added that they believe they would be able to return to profitability by 2025 with the cut; assuming that air travel returns to pre-COVID-19 levels, as currently forecast.

Largest Ever Loss For A Thai Company

Thai Airways reported a record loss last year of 141.2 billion baht ($4.6 billion). The annual loss was the largest ever for a Thai company, according to data compiled by the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

Thai Airways is seeking a capital infusion of as much as 50 billion baht ($1.65 billion) under a debt restructuring plan; set to be submitted to a bankruptcy court to keep the flag carrier operational, according to a Bloomberg report.

Revenue fell 73.8 per cent to 48.3 billion baht. Thai Airways, which has posted losses every year barring one since 2013, is preparing to submit a debt rehabilitation plan to the bankruptcy court in Bangkok, in a bid to reduce its liabilities and return to profit, according to media reports from Bloomberg and Reuters.

While the airline expects their performance in the first half to improve from a year ago, with easing of some travel curbs, this will still be “negative” they said in the statement.

“Vaccines will be a significant factor in the aviation industry, because it affects entry restriction policy of Thailand and other countries around the world, and would increase the travelling confidence of tourists.”

Thai Airways