Thai Airways International has lost 10 percent of its market share in the past three years due to a shortage of aircraft and if it wants to restore the market share it needs to have at least 125 aircraft, said THAI president Sumeth Damrongchaitham.

The national flag carrier has recently submitted its business plan which includes the procurement of a new fleet of aircraft to the board for consideration and if the business plan is approved by the board, then the plan is likely to go to the Cabinet in December, he added.

While THAI is awaiting the arrival of the new fleet which is to be delivered in two years, Sumeth said the airline has Plan B to rent aircraft to supplement its current fleet in order to accommodate passengers especially during the high season.

He indicated that the number of aircraft to be rented is yet to be determined but it must correspond with the number of planes under maintenance.

Regarding the business alliance plan, the THAI president said the national flag carrier planned to join hands with its ally to expand flights to the United States after the US FAA has upgraded the status of Thailand from Category 2 to Category 1.

Lately, he disclosed that THAI had partnered with Spring Airlines, China’s biggest low-cost airline, to accommodate Chinese tourists who want to travel to Thailand during the high season from December to next February.

THAI’s load factor during the October-November period stood at 78 percent due to 10 percent drop in tourist arrivals from China.