Moves by no-frills Thai Lion Air (TLA) to expand its international footprint are gathering pace as its domestic network growth appears to be slowing.
After its commencement of twice-daily services from its Don Mueang airport base to Yangon on July 22, the subsidiary of Indonesia's Lion Air Group has Vietnam as its next immediate target.
Daily non-stop flights from Bangkok to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are now set for launch in October, according to TLA chief executive Aswin Yangkirativorn.
But China remains top of TLA's near-term international expansion plan as it gears up to tap the vast number of Chinese visitors to Thailand, their top overseas destination.
TLA will add more cities to its roster of charter services and upgrading certain charter flights to regular scheduled flights with ticket sales being offered to the general public, rather being opened just for the Chinese market, starting later this year and next year, said Mr Aswin.
The airline already serves nine Chinese cities including Taiyuan, Jinan, Nanning, Chongqing, Hefei, Xian and Guangzhou, from Bangkok, Krabi and Surat Thani, on a charter basis.
Serving Shanghai from Bangkok is also on the horizon, Mr Aswin said, indicating TLA's intention to cover more distant Chinese destinations.
Flying more distant routes is on the cards for TLA, which intends to launch a regular flight from Bangkok to Perth with a stopover in Bali early next year, pending regulatory approval.
The airline is on course to spread its wings to India in the near future with Mumbai and New Delhi the most likely ports to be served on a daily basis from Bangkok, said TLA director Darsito Hendroseputro.
At present, TLA's scheduled international operations are limited to twice-daily flights from Bangkok to Singapore, and daily flights to Jakarta and Yangon, compared with 10 cities for its domestic network.
Its plan to launch services from Bangkok to Trang, possibly with three flights a day, has been delayed for months pending regulatory approval from authorities. They are expected to issue the permit later this year, Capt Darsito said.
Mr Aswin said the airline's international expansion this year has been impeded by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) red-flagging Thailand for its aviation safety shortcomings.
That is the main reason why TLA will take delivery of six new aircraft this year rather than 10 as planned earlier.
TLA, which was due to take delivery of its 22nd new-generation Boeing 737 family jet this weekend, was keen to launch flights to Japan and South Korea but the plan was bogged down by denial from the two countries, in compliance with the ICAO's guidelines.
There are no immediate plans to expand its Myanmar coverage as TLA wants to see how its Yangon services perform, Capt Darsito said.
The Yangon route, already frequented by all major Thai airlines, has robust traffic potential and TLA is aiming to achieve an average load factor of 85%.
Financially, TLA hopes to turn black by the end of this year, breaking-even three years after its inception, said Mr Aswin.