Thai Airways seeks delay of Airbus A330 deliveries
BANGKOK, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Thai Airways International THAI.BK said on Wednesday it planned to ask Airbus (EAD.PA) to delay the delivery of six A330 aircraft due later this year because of the sluggish airline business.
The national carrier, hit by the global crisis and Thai airport closures late last year by political demonstrators, had no pressing need for the new planes and the postponement should help ease its financial burden, Chairman Surachai Tansitpong told Reuters.
"We will ask Airbus to delay the delivery of the six planes. It's not necessary for us to have new planes at the moment," Surachai said.
The plan came a day after Thai Airways said it had agreed with Airbus to postpone the first payment for the six A330 aircraft to April from January, with subsequent payments also delayed for three months.
The national carrier has ordered eight A330 aircraft and six of them will be delivered this year, with the first due in April. It has also ordered six A380 superjumbos to be delivered in December 2010.
Plans to revise a decommissioning plan will be discussed at a board meeting next week.
Thai Airways said last month the global crisis and the airport shutdowns would pull 2008 revenue growth below 10 percent and the impact would continue to be felt in 2009.
On Wednesday, its shares fell nearly 6 percent to 7.20 baht, underperforming a 2.15 percent fall in the main index. (Reporting by Manunphattr Dhanananphorn; Writing by Khettiya Jittapong; Editing by Alan Raybould)
