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(Bloomberg) — Five years after Thai Airways International Pcl filed for bankruptcy protection, the state-controlled carrier’s court-appointed debt administrator Piyasvasti Amranand is planning an aggressive international expansion.

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Called out of semi-retirement in 2020 by Thailand’s then-Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha, Piyasvasti was asked to take the controls of the airline and devise a rescue after the carrier had posted losses every year from 2013. Thai Air aims to emerge from its debt-restructuring this year and anticipates the resumption of stock trading in the second quarter.

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Sounder financial footing allowed Thai Air last year to order 45 Boeing Co. aircraft with an option for 35 more. Flight capacity has been increased.

‘Rapid Turnaround’

“Thai Airways’ rapid turnaround is quite astonishing,” said Weera Wongsan, president of Federation of Savings and Credit Cooperatives of Thailand, which invests in the airline’s bonds and stocks. “Most lenders were prepared for a much longer and more painful recovery timeframe.”

The turnaround is reflected in the airline’s earnings and global surveys that show its image and service ranking improving. Thai Airways posted net income of 15.2 billion baht ($449 million) in the first nine months of 2024, adding to a 28 billion baht profit in 2023 — a rebound from a record loss of 141 billion baht in 2020 when the Covid pandemic grounded most of its planes. 

“The debt rehabilitation accomplishment and earnings jump has significantly strengthened Thai Airways’ finances, which has allowed it to return to aggressive expansion mode,” Piyasvasti, a 71-year-old economist, said in an interview as industry executives gather in Singapore on Tuesday for the Aviation Festival Asia to discuss sustainability, artificial intelligence and passenger loyalty. It is now positioned to take advantage of the post-pandemic travel boom, he said.

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Thai Airways expects its fleet to jump to 143 aircraft in 2029 from 77 as of September 2024, according to its November presentation. It expects to expand routes to Europe, China, Australia and other international destinations. Thai Airways forecasts by 2029, it will carry about 35% of total passengers traveling through Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport, up from about 26% last year.

Still, as post-pandemic pent-up air travel demand slows amid more seat capacity, that “increased competition has pulled down ticket prices,” said Tiwa Shintadapong, president of Investors Association of Thailand.

Thai Airways is plotting an expansive course sooner than creditors thought it could, said Somboon Sangrungjang, a lawyer at Kudun & Partners Co. and an adviser on the carrier’s creditor committee.

At the heart of the carrier’s recovery plan for Thailand’s largest corporate debt crisis was the dismissal of more than half of its 28,000 employees in exchange for about 50 billion baht of new loans and cash, according to Piyasvasti, who was the carrier’s president from 2009 to 2012. 

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The airline’s total employees fell to about 13,000 in 2021 before rising to almost 17,000 last year, according to a company presentation. It also sold about 30% of its aircraft in four years through 2023. 

“It was a difficult decision to dismiss a large group of our colleagues, many of whom had been with the company for a long time,” said Piyasvasti, who as head of the three-member debt administrator team has final say on company decisions. “But that was the very last option to ensure the survival of the company and remaining employees.”

Airplane Restaurant

Piyasvasti raised cash by selling the airline’s properties and other assets. The move included launching a Bangkok restaurant resembling an airplane that serves in-flight meals. It also generated revenue by allowing people to experience flight simulations. 

Thai Airways just completed its 76 billion baht capital reorganization through a debt-to-equity swap with creditors and a new rights offering. The fresh cash helped turn the shareholders’ equity into a surplus, allowing the airline to seek the court’s permission for a debt plan exit in the second quarter, according to Piyasvasti.

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Piyasvasti, who has a PhD from the London School of Economics, tapped his previous corporate turnaround experience to pilot Thai Airways out of trouble.

In 2009, during his first stint with Thai Airways, Piyasvasti pulled the carrier out of financial trouble amid a surge in fuel costs during the global economic slowdown. A year later, it reported a record net income after what at the time was a historic losses n 2008. 

He oversaw the restructuring of the country’s power and oil industry when he served as energy minister two decades ago and then chairman of PTT Pcl, the nation’s largest oil company. He orchestrated the listings of PTT and state-controlled power producer Electricity Generating Pcl.

Piyasvasti, who is also president of the Ski and Snowboard Association of Thailand, indicated he plans to step back a little from his intense involvement in Thai Airways after the debt rehabilitation exit. 

“I will not work any full-time job any more after this,” he said. “I already have had enough after a very tough and demanding time here.”

—With assistance from Lee Miller.

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