Mr. Piyasvasti Amranand, THAI President, said that the ratings reflect the leadingposition of THAI in airline business on the routes in and out of Thailand and the benefitsderived as a member of Star Alliance, which is the largest airline alliance in the world.However, these strengths are partially offset by its relatively high leverage and exposure tofuel price volatility, foreign exchange risk, and event risk such as epidemics, naturaldisasters, and Middle East political unrest. In addition, intense competition from bothpremium and low-cost carriers will continue to constrain the revenue per passengerkilometer
in the short to medium term.
THAI is now one of the largest airlines in Asia. As of March 2011, its internationalnetwork comprised 62 international destinations with 589 flights per week. Capacity,measured as available seat kilometers (ASK), in the first nine months of 2011 increased by4.9% from the same period in 2010 since the company added six new aircraft to its fleet.THAI has a strong market position in international routes with a market share of around36.5% of international passenger traffic through Suvarnabhumi airport.