![Thai Airways wants to buy or lease another 28 airliners, to replace retired aircraft and maintain its in-service fleet at 100 planes.(Bangkok Post file photo)](https://static.bangkokpost.com/media/content/20170714/c1_1287182.jpg)
National carrier Thai Airways International (THAI) will seek cabinet approval to acquire 28 more passenger aircraft for delivery over the next five years.
Montri Chamrieng, vice-president for strategy and sustainable development, said the board of directors has approved the five-year strategic plan to replace retired planes.
Nineteen of the aircraft would be for use by Thai Airways, and nine for its subsidiary THAI Smile. This would maintain the overall size of the in-service fleet at 100 aircraft.
It was still to be decided whether to purchase or lease the planes.
The board also approved a new route between Bangkok and Vienna in Austria, commencing around Oct 30. The airline will have four flights a week on this route with a projected load factor of 75%. Approval was based on the potential of the route, as Vienna could be THAI’s network hub for eastern Europe.
THAI plans to increase flights from four to seven a week to Brussels, Rome, Moscow and airports in Scandinavia.