8 new Thai airlines to take off this year as tourism rebounds

The new airlines are P80 Air, Landarch Airlines, Really Cool Airlines, Pattaya Airways, Asian Aerospace Service, Avanti Air Charter, Siam Seaplane, and Asia Atlantic Airlines, the Bangkok Post reported.

The carriers have also been permitted by the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand to import a total of 60 aircraft.

Founded by Patee Sarasin, a former chief executive of the budget carrier Nok Airlines, Really Cool Airlines plans to start chartered flight services in March, according to Bloomberg.

It initially plans to fly to Japan and would then expand its services to more Asian destinations such as Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai.

Thailand last year received 28 million foreign tourists, with Malaysians being the largest source of arrivals, followed by Chinese and South Koreans.

In 2019, Thailand welcomed 39.8 million international tourists.