Bangkok Airways is aiming for a post-pandemic high of 4.7 million passengers this year, based on optimism about Thai tourism driven by interest in HBO's The White Lotus TV series.
Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth, president of Bangkok Airways, said the airline already recorded a 14% increase in advance bookings from March until September this year.
Season 3 of The White Lotus series was filmed in Thailand, including Samui, helping to boost overall tourism sentiment.
Bookings for Samui have surged since the end of last year, even before the series was available via streaming.
A luxury hotel chain operating on Samui already contacted the airline to co-promote travel on the island following the success of the latest series.
Mr Puttipong said according to the International Air Transport Association, the aviation industry has continued to grow and Asia-Pacific has the highest travel demand.
This year, the airline expects to operate 48,077 flights with an average load factor of 82%.
The company expects to fly 4.7 million passengers, the highest since the pandemic. In 2019, it served more than 5.8 million passengers. The average airfare for Bangkok Airways is 4,200 baht.
The airline operates flights to 11 domestic destinations and eight cities overseas. He said the airline plans to resume the Samui-Kuala Lumpur route to attract European tourists.
Since December last year, the airline leased two aircraft via a wet lease agreement to operate flights to Siem Reap, Phnom Penh and Luang Prabang.
Bangkok Airways expects to operate 25 aircraft this year and aims to add 12 aircraft to replace its turboprop ATR72-600 planes between 2026 and 2028.
In terms of its non-airline business, Bangkok Airways is set to begin renovating Samui airport, which it owns, by the fourth quarter, and it is planning a runway expansion at Trat airport.
Last year Bangkok Airways recorded revenue of 26 billion baht and profit of 3.8 billion baht. The airline wants to increase revenue by 8-9% this year.
Following Friday's earthquake in Myanmar that struck Bangkok, the airline was informed that all departing flights from airports throughout Thailand were cancelled.
Mr Puttipong said the earthquake should only impact tourism in the short term as all major safety protocols were carried out in important locations, including airports.
