Thai AirAsia has requested intervention from the government to address declining performance in the Chinese travel market, advocating for the initiation of a stimulus campaign to bolster tourism.

The airline's Chief Executive, Santisuk Klongchaiya, highlighted that the anticipated growth in the Chinese market has fallen short due to diminishing confidence in safety concerning travel to Thailand, exacerbated by an increase in online fraud incidents.

In 2019, over 30% of Thai AirAsia's international route capacity was attributed to the Chinese market; this figure has since plummeted to 17%.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand had projected 8 million arrivals from China for the current year, but estimates for the first quarter indicate that only 1.5 million Chinese tourists are expected, raising concerns that total arrivals may be closer to 6 million by year-end.

Lower-than-expected bookings from China during the first quarter have prompted the airline to look towards alternative markets for growth.

Santisuk noted a trend where Chinese travelers are opting for destinations such as Japan, Malaysia, and Vietnam instead of Thailand.

This downturn has also affected travel confidence in other Chinese-speaking regions including Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

Santisuk urged collaboration among stakeholders from both the public and private sectors to revive confidence in tourism.

He underlined the need for the government to allocate resources effectively for promoting the market, suggesting initiatives such as partnerships with Chinese online travel agencies and organization of familiarization trips with prominent Chinese influencers and travel agents.

As a counterbalance to the challenges in the Chinese sector, Thai AirAsia is pivoting towards growth in South Asia, where its share of capacity on international routes has increased to 18%, up from 8% in 2019. The airline also continues to strengthen its presence within Southeast Asia, targeting markets such as Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, and is planning to introduce new routes leveraging fifth freedom rights, which enable flights to destinations not originating or concluding in Thailand.

Currently, Thai AirAsia operates three fifth freedom routes connecting Thailand to Japan via Taiwan and is assessing the feasibility of flights via Hong Kong to additional destinations.

Furthermore, the airline is intending to raise its domestic route capacity to 65% from 60% in the previous year, recognizing that domestic flights yield profit margins that can be double that of international services despite lower fares.

Expansion plans for domestic routes from Suvarnabhumi Airport include increasing operational routes to 11 by the end of this year, aligning with the dual policies for Bangkok airports and primarily catering to foreign passengers.

Santisuk noted that Suvarnabhumi remains under-equipped for domestic traffic, currently facing competition from only one other low-cost airline.

Last year, the airline recorded a rise in foreign passengers utilizing domestic routes, capturing 24% of total domestic traffic compared to 20% in 2019.