Thai Airways has announced that its “light premium” business unit, Thai Smile, will soon take over the Bangkok to Colombo service.
The route was previous serviced by the B777 and A330, but it seems that passenger demand and the flight distance do not warrant these wide-body, long-range jetliners. Thai Smile, which operates an A320 fleet, is a more suitable operator of this regional route.
Starting on August 20, Thai Smile will fly between Bangkok Suvarnabhumi and Colombo four times a week, and it will increase the frequency to seven flights per week effective October 27.
The schedules are as follows:
|
Route |
Flight |
Departure |
Arrival |
|
Bangkok - Colombo |
TG767 |
22.10 hrs. |
00.01 hrs. (local time) |
|
Colombo - Bangkok |
TG768 |
01.20 hrs. (local time) |
06.15 hrs. |
Thai Smile operates flights in a two-class configuration – Smile Plus business class (European regional style, with the middle seat left empty) and Smile economy class. Business class features 16 seats while economy is configured with 156 seats.
This "light premium" unit of TG will eventually become a separate airline, albeit wholly owned by the Thai flag carrier. It will be similar to Silk Air of Singapore Airlines and Dragonair of Cathay Pacific. A spokesperson of TG has confirmed with Business Traveller that the airline's board approved the setup of a new company, Thai Smile Airways Company Limited, back in January. The minister of transport has already approved the proposal, and it is being reviewed by the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB). Final approval from the cabinet is expected for mid-September.
For in-depth look into Thai Smile, click here.
For more information, visit www.thaismileair.com
Clement Huang
