National—
On December 28th, 2023, Mr. Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, a list-MP from the United Thai Nation Party, publicly mentioned complaints regarding expensive plane tickets during holidays.
According to a statement by Thanakorn, Mr. Suriya Juangroongruangkit, the Thai Minister of Transport, followed up on the problem and ordered the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) officials to explain the reasons.
The high demand for aerial transportation during the holidays and the number of flights were not sufficient. Furthermore, the aviation business had not yet fully recovered after COVID-19, causing fare prices to increase during the holidays, stated CAAT officials.
However, Thai Ministry of Transport officials had issued approval for an addition of 8 airlines and 60 airplanes in 2024. It is believed that it would be sufficient according to the demand, especially during the holidays, said Thanakorn.
Mr. Thanakorn further added that if passengers were exploited with high fare prices, they could collect evidence and report it to CAAT for investigation. The airlines would be punished according to the law if found guilty.
