THAI Smile Airways
บริษัท ไทยสมายล์แอร์เวย์ จำกัด
IATA ICAO Callsign
WE THD THAI SMILE
Founded19 August 2011 (2011-08-19)
(as Thai Wings)
Commenced operations7 July 2012 (2012-07-07)
(as Thai Smile)
Ceased operations31 December 2023 (2023-12-31)
(re-integrated into Thai Airways International)
AOC #AOC.0007[1]
HubsBangkok–Suvarnabhumi
Focus citiesChiang Mai
Frequent-flyer programRoyal Orchid Plus
AllianceStar Alliance (Connecting Partner)
Parent companyThai Airways International
Headquarters89 Vibhavadi Rangsit Road, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900, Thailand
Key peopleViset Sontichai (CEO)
Websitewww.thaismileair.com

THAI Smile Airways was a Thai regional airline and a was wholly owned subsidiary of Thai Airways International headquartered in Bangkok. In 2023, it was announced that Thai Smile would be merged into its parent company Thai Airways.[2] The airline merged into Thai Airways International on 31 December 2023. The full cessation of operations was fully effective on January 1, 2024.[3]

History

On 20 May 2011, the Thai Airways board announced plans to create a new lower-cost airline, at the time dubbed Thai Wings.[4] The creation of the airline was announced by Ampon Kittiampon, the chairman of Thai's board of directors, on 19 August 2011.[5] It began operations in July 2012.[5] According to Ampon, THAI Smile is intended to serve the market gap between low-cost carriers and full service airlines.[5] The name THAI Smile was chosen from a pool of 2,229 entries in a contest to name the airline.[5] According to an official at Thai Airways, THAI Smile was planned to begin showing an annual profit of about five million baht within two years of the start of operations.[5]

In 2020, THAI Smile established a partnership with USA based Optiontown to run a prepaid flight subscription platform called Flight Pass, which enables customers to pre-purchase THAI Smile flights to one or more destinations at the best available price and decide when they want to travel at a later date.[6]

Merger into Thai Airways International

In February 2023, it was announced that Thai Smile may be dissolved as a separate entity and merged with its parent company, Thai Airways International, by mid-2024 in an effort to reduce losses.[7]

On 18 May 2023, it was announced that Thai Smile would be merged into its parent as part of Thai Airways International's post-COVID reconstruction process by the end of 2023.[8] Thai Smile was set to ceased all operations on 31 December 2023.

Destinations

As of 2023, Thai Smile flew to the following destinations. The airline served only domestic destinations before ceasing operations on 31st December 2023.:[9]

Country/Territory City/Region Airport Notes Refs
BangladeshChittagongShah Amanat International AirportTerminated
CambodiaPhnom PenhPhnom Penh International AirportTerminated
Siem ReapSiem Reap International AirportAirport Closed
Siem Reap–Angkor International AirportTerminated
ChinaChangshaChangsha Huanghua International AirportTerminated
ChongqingChongqing Jiangbei International AirportTerminated
KunmingKunming Changshui International AirportTerminated
XiamenXiamen Gaoqi International AirportTerminated
ZhengzhouZhengzhou Xinzheng International AirportTerminated
Hong KongHong Kong International AirportTerminated
IndiaAhmedabadSardar Vallabhbhai Patel International AirportTerminated[10]
DelhiIndira Gandhi International AirportTerminated
GayaGaya AirportTerminated
HyderabadRajiv Gandhi International AirportTerminated
JaipurJaipur International AirportTerminated
KolkataNetaji Subhas Chandra Bose International AirportTerminated[11]
LucknowChaudhary Charan Singh International AirportTerminated
MumbaiChhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International AirportTerminated
VaranasiLal Bahadur Shastri AirportTerminated
IndonesiaJakartaSoekarno–Hatta International AirportTerminated
LaosLuang PrabangLuang Prabang International AirportTerminated
VientianeWattay International AirportTerminated
MacauMacau International AirportTerminated
MalaysiaKota KinabaluKota Kinabalu International AirportTerminated[12]
Kuala LumpurKuala Lumpur International AirportTerminated
PenangPenang International AirportTerminated
MyanmarMandalayMandalay International AirportTerminated
YangonYangon International AirportTerminated
NepalKathmanduTribhuvan International AirportTerminated
SingaporeChangi AirportTerminated
Sri LankaColomboBandaranaike International AirportTerminated
TaiwanKaohsiungKaohsiung International AirportTerminated
TaipeiTaiwan Taoyuan International AirportTerminated
ThailandBangkokDon Mueang International AirportTerminated[13]
Suvarnabhumi AirportHub
Chiang MaiChiang Mai International AirportTerminated
Chiang RaiMae Fah Luang - Chiang Rai International AirportTerminated
Hat YaiHat Yai International Airport
Khon KaenKhon Kaen Airport
KrabiKrabi International Airport
LoeiLoei AirportTerminated
Nakhon Si ThammaratNakhon Si Thammarat AirportTerminated
NanNan Nakhon AirportTerminated
NarathiwatNarathiwat Airport
PhuketPhuket International AirportTerminated
Roi EtRoi Et AirportTerminated
Surat ThaniSurat Thani International AirportTerminated
TrangTrang AirportTerminated
Ubon RatchathaniUbon Ratchathani Airport
Udon ThaniUdon Thani International AirportTerminated
VietnamHanoiNoi Bai International AirportTerminated
Ho Chi Minh CityTan Son Nhat International AirportTerminated

Fleet

Thai Smile Airbus A320-200

As of 2023, THAI Smile operated the following aircraft:[14]

Aircraft In Service Orders Passengers Note
U Y Total
Airbus A320-200 3 — 12 156 168 To be transferred back to Thai Airways International by the end of 2023.[15]
9 — 162 174
Total 12

Sponsorship

Thai Smile Airways was an official sponsor of Thai Honda Ladkrabang and Ratchaburi Mitr Phol.[16][17]

References

  1. ↑ "List of Thailand Air Operator Certificate Holders". Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand. 5 October 2022. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  2. ↑ Cross, Lee (2023-05-18). "Thai Smile to be Re-Absorbed into Thai Airways International". Airways. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  3. ↑ "Thai Smile Airways to cease flight operations on December 31". nationthailand. 2023-12-01. Retrieved 2023-12-02.
  4. ↑ "THAI to launch new budget airline". Bangkok Post. 20 May 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "THAI sister airline launch set for 2012". Bangkok Post. 20 August 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
  6. ↑ "Thai Smile Flight Pass". Thaismile.com. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
  7. ↑ bangkokpost.com - Thai Smile-THAI merger 'to cut losses' 25 February 2023
  8. ↑ Cross, Lee (2023-05-18). "Thai Smile to be Re-Absorbed into Thai Airways International". Airways. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  9. ↑ "Thai Smile Booking and Destinations". Thai Smile. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  10. ↑ "THAI SMILE MOVES AHMEDABAD SERVICE TO THAI FROM SEP 2023". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  11. ↑ "Thai Smile Resumes Kolkata Bangkok Flights".
  12. ↑ Liu, Jim (August 16, 2017). "Update 2: Thai Smile cancels Kota Kinabalu service from Sep 2017". Routes Online. Retrieved 2022-01-25.
  13. ↑ "New Route! Fly Direct Flights from Donmuang to Chiang Mai". Thai Smile.
  14. ↑ Airbus Orders and Deliveries (XLS), accessed via "Orders & Deliveries". Airbus. 31 August 2017. Retrieved 4 October 2017.
  15. ↑ leah (2023-05-18). "Thai Airways - Thai Smile merger gets green light". Thaiger. Retrieved 2023-05-21.
  16. ↑ ""ไทยฮอนด้า" ทุ่ม 100 ล้าน ลุยไทยลีก ตั้งเป้าท็อป 10". Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  17. ↑ "สายการบินแรก!ราชบุรีจับมือไทยสมายล์". Retrieved 15 September 2017.

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