Thai Airways Company

Thai Airways
IATA ICAO Call sign
TH TAC THAI AIR
Founded1 November 1951;
74 years ago (1951-11-01)
(amalgamation of Siamese Airways and Pacific Overseas Airline)
Ceased operations
1 April 1988;
38 years ago (1988-04-01)
(merged into Thai International)
HubsBangkok–Don Mueang
Focus cities
Parent companyThai Airways International
HeadquartersPom Prap Sattru Phai, Bangkok, Thailand

Thai Airways Company or Thai Airways (TAC; Thai: เดินอากาศไทย) was the domestic flag carrier of Thailand. Its main base was the domestic terminal (Terminal 3) at Don Mueang International Airport (then known as Bangkok International Airport). Its head office was located in Pom Prap Sattru Phai, Bangkok. In 1988, Thai Airways was merged to become Thai Airways International (Thai: การบินไทย).

History

Thai Airways traces its roots to the Siamese Airways Company Limited, the domestic flag carrier of Thailand formed on 1 March 1947 by a cabinet resolution. The fleet initially consisted of Douglas DC-3, Beechcraft C-45, L-5 Sentinel, Rearwin and Fairchild aircraft. The inaugural flight was Bangkok-Phitsanulok-Lampang-Chiang Mai and a Chiang Mai-Mae Sariang-Mae Hong Son service began two days later. The first international flight, a Bangkok-Songkhla-Penang service, took place in December 1947.

Siamese Airways merged with Pacific Overseas Airlines (Siam) (POAS), to form Thai Airways Company Limited (TAC) (Thai: บริษัท เดินอากาศไทย จำกัด (บดท)) - commonly Thai Airways, following a government resolution on 1 November 1951.

In 1960, Thai Airways established the international flag carrier, Thai Airways International Company Limited (THAI; Thai: บริษัท การบินไทย จำกัด). The international carrier was a joint venture between Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) with the Scandinavian carrier initially providing a 30% share capital of two million baht.

Hawker Siddeley 748 of Thai Airways at Chiang Mai International Airport in 1979

Thai Airways acquired an Avro 748 turboprop in 1963, a Boeing 737-200 jet in 1977, a Short 330 in 1982, and Short 360 and Airbus A310-200 in 1985.

On 1 April 1988, Thai Airways Company Limited (TAC) merged with Thai Airways International to create the unitary national airline of the Kingdom of Thailand, under a cabinet resolution and direction of the Prime Minister, General Prem Tinsulanonda.

Thai Airways's 11 aircraft, comprising three Boeing 737-200, four Short 330, two Short 360 and two Airbus A310-200, combined fleet with Thai Airways International, for a total of 41 aircraft. Airline codes changed to Thai Airways International's airline codes at the end of 1988.

Destinations

Domestic Destinations of Thailand:

from/to Bangkok – Don Mueang International Airport

from/to Chiang Mai – Chiang Mai International Airport

from/to Hat Yai – Hat Yai International Airport (formerly destination as Songkhla)

International Destinations:

Fleet

Incidents and accidents

See also

References

  1. ↑ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. 29 March 1986. 130.
  2. 1 2 "Thai Airways International - Company History". Archived from the original on 26 June 2010. Retrieved 13 September 2010.
  3. ↑ "Thai Aviation History - Fleets of Defunct Thai Airlines" (PDF).
  4. ↑ "Thai Airways International - Developments and Advancements of THAI AD. 1979–1988". Archived from the original on 29 May 2009. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
  5. ↑ "Accident description for HS-TDH". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
  6. ↑ "Accident description for HS-TGL". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  7. ↑ "Accident description for HS-TDE". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  8. ↑ "Accident description for HS-THG". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  9. ↑ "Accident description for HS-TBB". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  10. ↑ "Accident description for HS-THI". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 4 February 2014.