Thai Airways pledges to boost Indonesia arrivals

THAI Air ways International has expressed its commitment to help boost tourist arrivals to Indonesia, particularly to Jakarta and Bali from Bangkok, a major city tourist destination with about 20 million arrivals annually.

“T h a i A i r way s woul d l i k e t o increase the number of flights from Bangkok to Jakarta and Bali, but there is concern about facilities and slot times in Jakarta and Denpasar,” Thai Air ways district sales manager i n Ja k a r t a Abdul Azi s Maliki told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of an event to promote the airline’s Live TV onboard enter- tainment in Bangkok, recently.

World hub

Thai Airways cooperates with tourism boards in Korea, Japan, Dubai, India, Australia and Europe, and its base in Bangkok has many connecting flights from various countries to Jakarta and Bali, he added.

Abdul Aziz responded to a statement made by Tourism Minister Arief Yahya, who was seeking cooperation with tourism stakeholders in Bangkok. Thailand welcomed 35 million tourists in 2017.

Abdul Azis called on the Indonesian government to cooperate with governments around the world.

“The Indonesian gover nment needs to provide tourist boards with more information about the country. Indonesia also needs to improve tourism facilities, accommodation, t ra ns por t a t i o n a nd s a f e t y,” he said.

In regard to Live TV, Thai Airways brand and marketing communication director Kittiphong Sansomboon said the introduction of the onboard entertainment in late May was part of efforts to provide additional services, not only for business class passengers but also for economy class passengers.