Thai Airways Delays Airbus A380s by a Year

News added by Victor Hunt under Airline News

Thai Airways International Pcl, the national carrier, will delay the arrival of its first three Airbus SAS A380s by about a year as the global recession hammers travel demand.“The deal is done,” Executive Chairman Wallop Bhukkanasut said by phone today in Bangkok. “We have amended the contract without any charges.”

The A380s will now begin to arrive in Thailand from late 2012, he added. Airbus will deliver all six of the superjumbos Thai Air has on order by the end of 2013.

Air France-KLM Group and Deutsche Lufthansa AG have also delayed double-decker A380s as business and leisure travelers pare flying. Airbus plans to hand over 14 of the double-decker aircraft this year, down from 18 previously, it said on May 6, as customers resist adding more capacity.

“It’s good that we delay it,” Thai Air’s Acting President Narongsak Sangapong said in a separate phone interview. “We don’t want to take big planes during the current economic situation.”

State-controlled Thai Air has cut flights and scrapped bonus payments after slumping to a net loss of 21.4 billion baht ($630 million) last year on the global recession and disruptions caused by political protests.

The carrier may also report a second-quarter loss after concerns about swine flu further damped travel demand, Transport Minister Sopon Zarum said Aug. 4. The airline was profitable in the first quarter.

The board may approve the second-quarter results at a meeting tomorrow, Narongsak said.

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