TG joins Springbok route

Thai Airways International reintroduces its Johannesburg service, 2 June, four times a week using a two-class 292-seat Boeing 777-200ER .

The airline first flew to South Africa in 2006 and was forced to discontinue the service in January 2009  due to high fuel costs, poor aircraft choice, a global economic downturn, internal political problems and the company’s lack of liquidity, according to the airline’s financial report.

With the reincarntion, THAI hopes to draw passengers from Asian countries to Africa and South America using Johannesburg as the gateway through a partnership with Star Alliance member South African Airlines.

THAI president, Piyasvasti Amranand, says he is confident that the airline can build traffic on the Bangkok-Johannesburg route because there are various untapped market opportunities here in Asia.

“Johannesburg is an ideal gateway to South Africa and even services to South America. The economies of these two continents are robust. Not only Thai passengers will benefit, but also we can draw passengers from other Asian countries as well.”

In order to attract Asian passengers to South Africa through Bangkok, THAI schedules the new flights to allow convenient connections from regional flights at both ends of the route. In South Africa, it is working with SAA to provide connecting services to other points in Africa

The outbound flight departs Bangkok at 0115 and arrives in Johannesburg at 0730 on the same day. The inbound flight departs 1340 and arrives in Bangkok at 0555.

For the first six months, Mr Piyasvasti said THAI would concentrate on selling South African domestic destinations through cooperation with South African Airways, a member of Star Alliance, then expand to regional destinations before offering code-share connection to South America — Argentina, Brazil and Chile.

Currently, the airline also has interline agreements with Comair and Interair for Cape Town, Durban in South Africa, Angola, Zambia, Tanzania, Madagascar, Seychelles and Mauritius.

TG’s president is confident the Johannesburg route will turn a profit this time round due to using a more fuel efficient B777-200ER instead of the A340-600, previously used.

The airline is also employing a careful hedging plan for the route to enable it manage better fuel price fluctuations.

Mr Piyasvasti expects the route could breakeven in the second or third year but it will depend on reaching an average 70% cabin factor.

According to Amadeus Market Information, during 2009  about 22,600 people travelled from Thailand to Johannesburg. Singapore Airline, Emirates and Qatar Airways gained the highest market share. Hong Kong and Singapore were the biggest market suppliers in Asia with about 56,000 and 29,000 passengers respectively. Their home-base carriers operate non-stop flights to South Africa.

Important markets that THAI wants to tap are China and Japan, since none of their home-base carriers fly this long haul route.

From Beijing, there were almost 10,000 passengers, half of them using Cathay Pacific. About 4,000 passengers from Guangzhou used Emirates and Ethiopian Airlines and over half of 3,800 Japanese flying the route used Cathay Pacific.

THAI executive vice president, Pruet Boobphakam, said that competition to attract passengers from China, Japan or other countries with no non-stop flights to South Africa would be tough, “like exchanging punches in a boxing ring.” But a code-share with All Nippon Airways will help to draw some passengers to the THAI flight to Johannesburg.