Thai Air to Cancel JFK--BKK?
 

Been reading threads on airliners.net about Thai Air having finally (after much speculation) stop booking tix from JFK-BKK from July 1 onwards.

Seemed like a rumor at first, but now multiple reports coming out that fuel costs have cut this route indefinitely, with the idea that TG will now route passangers through LAX for its regularly scheduled LAX-BKK flight.

It's yet to be decided (from what I gather) if they will even keep their nonstop from LAX-BKK or if that will now involve a mandatory stop at Kansai (KIX) with a different aircraft (perhaps the A346 as opposed to the A345.)

I'm starting to worry about the future of our nonstop in December...but I feel even worse for those that have JFK-BKK tix already booked.

What a complete bummer...gotta love the fact that the fuel crisis has affected almost every operational airline in the world.

:( Depressing...

thanks for the correction, kim...i actually meant ftalk.com.

Oh...it wasn't a correction, it was an addition. I thought that maybe you hadn't seen the discussion on flyertalk.com.

Well that stinks.
I was on the Singapore Air non stop from Newark to SIN for August travel and that got canceled (converted to all biziness) a couple months ago. I was then "accommodated" on the one stop via Frankfurt. My other option was the TG non stop, and I then regretted not having booked that flight. Now that flight is gone too?

Apparently, at $130 or more per barrel of oil the airlines cannot make money without raising fares substantially. And, its these long haul flights which are now being cut the most.
: (

I'm told that they, TG, need to increase the fair by 50% to keep flying this route and make it profitable.

My fondest flying memory was flying on Pan Am flight 001 that stop at every city possible from London to Bangkok. Looks like we're going backward in time!

Ugh...we have our ff tix for our Oct/Nov trip on that flight (through US Air). I assume it is best to wait until the flight is officially cancelled to contact USAir to see how they will accomodate us? I remember about a year about ago there was talk about this flight "definitely" being cancelled and it never happened. Well at least we have some flexibilty on the dates.

That is really too bad. We will be on that flight this Wednesday. It is so ( now maybe was) nice to fly to Asis from the east coast non-stop.

Spelling...ASIA

Does any one have any idea what happens if you already had tix booked (have mine booked for late Aug.?)? What do they do? Insist on/try to accomodate you on another flight, or just reimburse you?

Don't worry. If you have missed your chance to fly the A345 ultra-longhaul in coach on Emirates, Singapore and now Thai, you still have opportunites. Kingfisher will start non-stops from Bangalore to San Francisco to New York on 8/27 and 9/1 respectively.

I called Thai Air last year about the talk of the non-stop LAX-Bangkok flight possibly being cancelled and the reservationist went off on me...got furious...for me asking a simple question.
She asked where I had heard this and that it wasn't true and if they didn't have that flight then what would they have....and on and on and on. I told her that there had been talk about it and as to what they would have if it the non-stop- were cancelled...then I would suspect that they would have the same thing they had before the non-stops started....a stopover in Japan. Happy Travels!

It must be a universal airline script: deny, deny and then hang up.

Months ago, when I called Singapore Air, questioning them about the news reports that they were going to switch their non stop to all business, I was confronted with a nearly identical response: "where did you hear that?; that won't happen; don't worry about it; we have no plans to do so........."

Yeah, right.

I spoke with a Thai Air agent this morning. She said that the flight was "under review", they hope to have a decision next week, that lots of people are calling but nothing will be done about rebooking until a decision is made.

robert---they only hang up on new yorkers

The news in Toronto yesterday said that it costs Air Canada $68,948. to fill up the tank on its 777 for a one-way flight to Heathrow. I suspect the cost is even greater at Heathrow to fill up for the return trip. That is $198. per seat for the 349 seats onboard. Probably that Thai NY flight is twice as long and against the prevailing wind as well. I wonder how the A380s will deal with this?

CASM (cost per available seat-mile) and fuel burn per seat for the A380 is about the same as the 777-300ER that AC is using. Basically the most efficient ones out there are for longhauls.

The issue with the A380 is its size. You need to be able to fill more seats per flight to get its efficiency.

Over on Flyer Talk the word seems to be that the TG JFK-BKK non stop is kaput after July 1. That really is a bit of bad news. One question: if TG suspends that flight from JFK, does that mean it will have no flights to the NYC area?

I've been eating my way through some outstanding Thai restaurants in Queens for the past few months and there is actually a huge Thai community there. I guess they too will have to seek out other air carriers.
: )

And Bob, yes SIA hung up on me likely because I was a New Yorker. I started mumbling something about a lawsuit and the next thing I knew the line went dead. Go figure.

The cancellation of JFK-BKK is now official, according to the Wall Street Journal:

"BANGKOK -- Thai Airways International PCL said it will scale down its fleet expansion plans, cut flights to the U.S. and sell long-haul planes to cope with soaring jet fuel costs.

"President Apinan Sumanaseni said Friday that the number of aircraft to be procured over the next 10 years will be cut from the 65 planned. A revised proposal will be put to the airline's board next month.

"The spiraling jet fuel cost is also forcing the airline to terminate its direct Bangkok-New York flights from July 1 and to cut flights to Los Angeles to five a week from seven, he told reporters.

...

Although I've never taken the JFK flight on Thai, I agree that this is sad news. I do plan to try the LAX non-stop in December, if not before. Does anyone happen to know which days of the week the LAX to BKK flight is NOT going to be flying???

Carol

Carol, they haven't announced the new LAX schedule yet. I would suspect it would be the days with the lighter loads (I would expect mid-week to take the cuts.)

FYI, the LAX will no longer be a direct flight after July 1--it will have a mandatory stop now (most likely in Kansai or Seoul)

I'm watching this too with baited breath as we're booked on the LAX/BKK route in December.

Filmwil....Really? This week I bought a ticket from LAX-BKK for August and it's on the non-stop flight.
I don't know if I'll be going or not due to all the happenings at home, although things have calmed down. The airfare was decent so I went on and bought the ticket and am taking a chance on this August trip happening.
I just talked to Thai Air yesterday to confirm everything and they didn't say anything about the non-stop being stopped, but confirmed my flight and non-stop flight schedule. Happy Travels!

Guen, check out the article that has everyone buzzing on the aviation boards:

http://tinyurl.com/3ocwhc

It mentions the removal of the JFK-BKK route and the change of 7x a week to 5x a week on the LAX route. More importantly, it quotes the president of Thai Air saying they will be selling ALL their A340-500s which are the only aircraft that can make the direct flight from LAX to BKK without a stop.

Everyone is speculating on which aircraft will replace them (be it the A340-600 or the 747s again)--either way once the aircraft are removed from the fleet, there will have to be a stop (most likely in Kansai, Japan...as that's where the route typically makes a stop when they have an equipment change currently.)

Now, your flight may or may not be affected by this--depending on when the aircraft are swapped out.

The reservation agents, FYI, have no idea what's going on. A lot of folks (especially those with tix for the now canceled JFK-BKK route) are complaining about the fact that corporate headquarters in Bangkok are not quick to give any info to the agents in the US. So, as a result, until they have more info, they claim it's business as usual.

I assume this should all be sorted out in the next few weeks--and you should know more then.

Hope that helps...

guen
When are you going to (maybe) go in August? I'm looking at the last two weeks of that month for myself.
Carol

Filmwil...Thanks
Carol...I'm to leave on the 21st and come home on the 31st.
Well, if/when these planes get sold, I hope they don't go changing the departure/return dates of people's flights. I have no flexibility on the Dec/Jan ticket. It's good that I bought Premier Economy on that ticket if I'm going to have to change planes and all...what a tiring headache. Happy Travels!

TG only has PE on it A340-500. If they sell those planes or move them to other flights, you won't have PE on its A340-600 of B747-400.

Looks like (and this isn't official) that Thai is canceling Monday and Wednesday departures as of 7/1 from LAX to BKK. Thai's website now shows all outbound Monday and Wednesday flights as sold out--so the logical conclusion is these are the 2x a week there will not be a flight from LAX. Hope that helps you some, Guen.

rkkwan...Well, then they had better either upgrade to Business or do a big refund difference between Premier Economy and Economy. Happy Travels!

Filmwil...Thanks.I'm not leaving on a Mon/Wed. By the way, how are the Thai lessons coming along? I haven't had time/concentration to study since all the family crisis stuff started up in March...plus work. But, I hope to get back on track this summer and at least review my materials. Maybe by then my mind will be clear enough to concentrate. Happy Travels!

also, welcome home to mari, lucy, and all the other traveling ladies. hope to see all of you at the gtg in sep.

oops, sorry, posted on wrong thread.

It's official:

http://tinyurl.com/6j5949

(From Thai's website):

----

THAI Announces Board Meeting Results


On 6th June 2008, Thai Airways International Public Company Limited (THAI) held a Board of Directors’ Meeting at THAI’s Head Office, chaired by Mr. Chaisawasd Kittipornpaiboon, THAI’s Chairman, with the following results:

1. Flight Operations between Bangkok and New York
Effective as from 1st July 2008, THAI will cease flight operations between Bangkok and New York due to the continual surge in oil prices.

2. Restructuring of flight operations to Los Angeles
THAI will reduce direct flight operations between Bangkok and Los Angeles from 7 flights to 5 flights per week, utilizing A340-500 aircraft type until September 2008. For THAI winter schedule, THAI will operate flights to Los Angeles via Osaka, Japan, utilizing Boeing 777-200 ER aircraft.

Currently, THAI operates daily flight to two US destinations, Los Angeles and New York, utilizing Airbus A340-500 aircraft.

----

So, looks like you're good, Guen. The A345 will still be in service in August, so Premium Economy should still be available for your trip.

We, on the other hand, will be subject to this new winter schedule with the stop at KIX on a different aircraft. Boo! :)

Well, I've been following this thread and the one on flyertalk.com as well. We have used the JFK-BKK flight for the last 3 years and hope it will be reinstated at some point. Meanwhile, we can only hope that this latest squeeze will not affect our ability to get flights on ANA's JFK-NRT route so that we can meet up with Air Niugini's flight to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea next May.

Reinstate the route? IF oil prices go down significantly, IF they couldn't find any buyer for the A345s, and IF BKK suddenly becomes a high yield business route that can fill lots of J seats.

Good luck with the first and third points. :)

Craig, I agree that NH 9/10 (ANA's JFK-NRT flights) are wonderful. Getting award seats on that flight has become impossible in F, but at least it's still possible to get discounted F (for RTW tickets) and business class award seats.

Simple truth is that travel to Bangkok just got about 6 hrs longer from Boston, New York, and a few other East Coast places.

Filmwil...My Dec/Jan ticket is in Premium Economy, not my August ticket. That one's in regular economy. So who knows what will happen on the Dec/Jan ticket. Happy Travels!

I'm right there with you, Guen. We're booked in biz class in December using miles. Hopefully it'll all work out--but, have to admit, all this makes me a little uncomfortable (especially with an award ticket--which puts us at the bottom of the food chain priority-wise.)

BTW--things are going great with Thai class! Yum lung ree-un pah-sah tai dtair mai poot geng mahk yung. (I'm learning Thai, but I don't speak very good yet.) I'm loving it--almost 14 weeks in and I've learned the Thai alphabet and we're just starting to read in Thai. So far, it's easier to speak it than understand it (Thai people talk so fast--I find myself asking 'can you please talk slowly' over and over again at restaurants.) Hopefully by the time we get there in December, I'll be a little more confident about it.

Hopefully we'll be overlapping with yours and Carol's trips in December and we can all get together for dinner!

Filmwil..."I don't speak very WELL yet." Smiles.
Glad the Thai classes are coming along. I'd like to get a private instructor, but with all of the going ons and having to commute weekends, by plane, out of state to check up on the elderly parent and take care of things...well...it's difficult to do all of that, study Thai, work, and stay focused on Thai. I'm sort of a real-life zombie. So, I'll probably have to wait until the Dec/Jan Bangkok trip to go back to my private school and continue my Thai lessons.
As for the Dec/Jan flight, I'm glad I paid for my ticket for that flight...as well as the August one... because I know how it can be on a frequent flyer award and with airline problems. I've been through it. Take care. Happy Travels!

yes, i only know 'good' so far...hopefully I'll eventually learn a word in Thai that differentiates between well and good. :)

It is official and posted on the Thai Air website. No further info at this time. Those of us booked on future Thai Air flites with frequent flyer miles need to do some research