Piyasvasti Amranand becomes THAI President

Piyasvasti joins THAI after having served most recently as chairman of the advisory panel to Kasikornbank Bank's CEO. He is a graduate of Oxford University, England. Thereafter, he was awarded a Master's and Ph.D. degree from the London School of Economics, with a strong background in mathematics, energy and the environment. Piyasvasti also headed Thailand's National Energy Policy Office that transformed the country's energy sector in the 1990s and was former Minister of Energy.

Piyasvasti said he wants to bring all his experience and knowledge to bear on the current issues facing THAI, in an effort to continually improve operational performance and the Company's financial position.

"I am under no illusion about the challenges facing aviation today, and that includes the challenges facing THAI," Piyasvasti said.

THAI's Board of Directors and senior management have addressed major liquidity issues facing them earlier this year with a turnaround plan that has already shown positive results.

"But we still need to do more. We must continue to cut costs, radically improve our operational performance and enhance the efficiency and returns of every division within the airline," Piyasvasti said.

"In this regard, I look forward to working with the large range of airlines and aviation organizations, such as IATA, Star Alliance, AAPA, ICAO and many others with whom THAI has excellent and enduring relationships."

At today's meeting with senior management and staff, the new THAI President outlined his directional policy statement. With regard to his goals for THAI, he intends to lead the Company with an emphasis on customer-oriented services that offer products and services that are aligned with customer demand and needs. He also aims to increase competitiveness so that THAI can deliver better customer experience at lower delivery cost compared to Asian and global competitors. THAI needs to also be more dynamic to respond quickly to sudden changes in the business environment. His commercial strategy will focus on revenue enhancement. Ultimately, Piyasvasti aims to lay the foundation to make THAI a strong and sustainable company for the long term.

As for Piyasvasti's strategy, he aims to create higher value for customers, design a more effective business model, pursue operational excellence, and ensure financial sustainability, all of which can only be achieved if everyone strives to succeed together.

Some of the quick-wins that Piyasvasti intends to accomplish will be through increasing customer satisfaction in areas that are achievable immediately without additional investment, such as improving the quality of inflight service catering and inflight reading materials. The improvement in seats and inflight entertainment in all aircraft is expected to be complete within 2 years. He also intends to improve fuel risk management practice and strategy in anticipating the continuing volatility of global oil prices. To enhance THAI's internal governance, he will introduce the concept of "Whistleblower Policy" that many global leading companies have successfully adopted.

THAI's new President aims to restore THAI to be the pride of Thailand around the world, as a leading Asian carrier that is consistently among the top 3 carriers in Asia and top 5 carriers in the world for overall customer experience.