Thai Airways Downsizes

Thai Airways International ($TAWNF@Thailand) plans to sell 42 jets and cut about a third of its workforce to cut costs and raise needed capital. The company’s restructuring committee said that the airline has been suffering since before the COVID-19 pandemic—losing money every year since 2012–and this plan is all part of bankruptcy protection and restructuring. The plan for the airline is to sell older jets that are no longer fuel-efficient. Additionally, a company spokesman said that 16 jets on lease will be returned to the airline. After the sales are complete, Thai Airways will have 58 jets left covering 4 types. As travel recovers, the airline plans to use its remaining fleet to increase flights into and out of Europe in conjunction with the Thai government reopening the country for quarantine-free entry for vaccinated travelers. The workforce will also drop from just over 21,000 workers to 14 and a half thousand employees by December of next year. Finally, the airline plans a nearly $750 million credit agreement with financial partners to close next year and a 25 billion baht infusion from the government to improve cash flow.