Thai Lion Air has scaled back fleet plans amid weaker demand, shelving the target of 40 aircraft for 2025 but adding two B737-900ERs in the fourth quarter.
The airline expects four to five more aircraft in 2026, after inducting four this year: two B737-800s and two B737-900ERs on dry leases. The current fleet comprises 21 B737-800s averaging 10.7 years and nine B737-900ERs averaging 12.7 years.
New winter routes from Bangkok Don Mueang include Sapporo Chitose via Kaohsiung, Osaka Kansai via Taipei Taoyuan, Chongqing, and Tianjin.
Softer inbound demand, especially from China, moderates growth from pre-pandemic levels of 40 units, with optimism for fourth-quarter peak season.
Aswin Yangkirativorn shared: “We’re still optimistic that Thai tourism will eventually improve. We adjusted our fleet expansion based on overall tourism growth.”
