This year Thai Airways is celebrating its 62nd anniversary today and has put on a special offer fare.
The carrier was born as a joint venture with SAS to start an international carrier to complement the domestic service already operated by Thai Airways Company, with flights starting on 1st May 1960 to a number of destinations in Asia from the main airport in Bangkok.
In 1977 the Thai government of the day purchased the SAS 15% stake and the carrier became a wholly state-owned enterprise. Having two different national carriers, one for mainly international and another for mainly domestic routes came to an end in 1988 when both carriers merged. During the 1990s the airline was privatized, embarked on a massive aircraft buying spree, and was a founder member of Star Alliance. The 2000s proved to be a decade of change for the airline, which saw plenty of troubles, both financially and politically with the changing situations. Ownership of the airline has changed with the finance ministry buying and selling shares at various points in the last 20 years and the carrier's management ability has been called into question many times, not least during the corruption scandal of bribes and inducements paid by engine maker Rolls Royce during 2017.
Some of the aircraft the airline has operated over the years include:
Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle III
Short Bros 330/360
Douglas DC8
McDonnell Douglas DC10
BAe 146
Boeing 747, 777
Airbus A300, A310, A320, A330, A340, A380
The current fleet:
20 Airbus A320 (Operated by Thai Smile)
12 Airbus A350
18 Boeing 777
8 Boeing 787
Celebrate THAI's 62nd Anniversary with a special discount for flights departing from Bangkok to destinations in Asia, Europe, and Australia or from Phuket to Europe and Australia.
Sales Period : 01 May - 15 May 2022
Travel Peroid : 03 May - 15 July 2022
Thai issued a special message, "A million thanks to all our passengers for your unfaltering love and support which motivate us to press onwards against all odds for the past 62 years.
THAI promises that we will always be by your side, and that we will continue improving our products and services in every aspect before graciously embarking on a journey towards our 63rd anniversary."