Last September, we flew Nok Air to Chiang Mai with great results. I posted to Fodors with high recommendations, but we are in BKK now and have just had bad experiences with them. From BKK to CM when we got to the airport for our flight, Nok Air had cancelled the flight, but put us on Thai Air for about the same time. When I confirmed the night before returning CM to Bkk, I was told the 8:00 am flight was cancelled again. We could not be put on later flights as we had connecting flights or appointments early morning. They asked if we could go that night-no we could not. They put us on a Thai Air that left earlier-7:00. They called me 3 times that night for different reasons and each time I was told we were confirmed. When we arrived at the airport at 6:00 am, Thai Air had no record of us. The flight was full and we were on standby, which only one of the six in our party got on. After much constant work on my part, we were able to get on a 1, 2 go flight at 8:45. When I asked why it was cancelled, the girls just giggled and said there were "some problems". I don't know if there are financial problems, but I was very disappointed this time and will not take a chance on this airline again. Any one traveling with them soon, should re-consider.

Thanks for the warning

this is getting to be a theme with the low cost carriers....i would not chance it....

i have had cancellations with bangkok air but they have always had back-up plans for us which were acceptable...

When I'm on vacation I do everything possible to reduce stress and everything possible to avoid things that can wreck a trip. Thus I (like Bob) avoid street food and I also stick to tried and true airlines whenever possible -- even if it costs me a bit more. Now that doesn't mean that thai air won't cancel a flight but since they have so many flights to and from CM I always figure the inconvenience will be reduced.

I suspect NOK may be in trouble too. They aren't even accepting any bookings past March 25. I e-mailed them about that last week and got a response that didn't make much sense. They also told me to check back in February, but it was already February! Also, they currently do not accept foreign credit cards on-line. That can't be good for business.

I had a similar experience with Nok Air - they put us on a Thai Air flight. Basically Nok Air is actually owned by Thai Air and that's why they can easily switch passengers over.
Increasingly, Thai Air is withdrawing from some of its domestic routes to allow Nok Air to take over. So although Nok Air is essentially a low-budget airline, it is owned by Thai Air and there is quite a bit of controversy over it taking over some routes and crowding out the competition.

There had been 2 accidents in the past month involving Nok Air. One of the accident was made public with reports in the newspaper when a 737 overshot the runway after one the engine was not functioning properly and the plane had to make an emergency landing. The accident happened when a Nok Air plane damaged a wing while taxing - this accident was not made public.

Nok Air has 4 planes and now 2 are down so it does not surprise me that there are cancellations as well as delays.

Personally, I will not fly Nok Air until they I see some improvement.

Yipes! Thanks for the info, Hanuman.

ttt