Thai Airways Takes Its Chief Executive Out of Command After a Flood Left Thousands of Bags Stranded at Bangkok
Thai Airways International's board on 2 October replaced its chief executive with an acting one, a week after flooding across Bangkok and surrounding provinces left the airline short of ground staff at its home hub. The move, taken at an extraordinary board meeting, came as thousands of checked bags sat unprocessed at Suvarnabhumi Airport and the government publicly pressed the airline's management to fix the problem or step aside. By the weekend the airline said flights and cargo were back to normal, but the leadership question, and the inquiry, remain open.
What the board decided
Thai Airways is the national carrier of Thailand and is listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand. On Friday 2 October its board removed the chief executive from running the company with immediate effect and appointed director Samrit Samniang as acting chief executive. AeroTime and other outlets reported the change as a dismissal. A later report in the Thai Examiner on 5 October described the situation as a suspension, announced on 4 October, to allow a formal inquiry of about 30 days into the operational breakdown. The reports agree on the essentials: the executive no longer runs the airline, remains a director, and holds a contract that, according to AeroTime and Aviation Today, runs to 31 January 2027.
Samrit joined the board in June 2025, according to Aviation Today, and was previously executive vice president for finance and accounting at PTT Exploration and Production from 2019 to 2024.
The board's own statement, as reported, cited persistent operational failures, ranging from extensive flight delays and baggage handling chaos to broader ground service breakdowns. The executive told reporters he had not been given a clear reason for the decision, according to AeroTime and TravelMole.
The board is chaired by Lavaron Sangsnit, who is also permanent secretary of Thailand's Finance Ministry. The ministry is the airline's largest shareholder with 38.90 per cent, according to the Thai Examiner. Because that is below 50 per cent, Thai Airways has not been a formal state enterprise since May 2020, when it entered court-supervised rehabilitation. The Thai Examiner's 5 October report added that the ministry had pushed to expand the board from 11 to 15 members.
How the flood became an airline problem
Heavy rain began on 25 September. Aviation Today reported about 320 millimetres falling on Bangkok over three days, with flooding affecting 42 provinces. The common thread in every account is that ground-handling staff could not reach Suvarnabhumi. AeroTime reported that employees either had flooded homes or stayed to protect family and property. Aviation Today put the share of ground staff unable to get to work at around half.
The effect on the baggage system was quick. AeroTime's timeline has baggage handling deteriorating on 26 and 27 September, 34 Thai Airways flights delayed on 28 September, and baggage from 52 flights still unprocessed two to three days later. Aviation Today reported that nearly all flights were delayed at the worst point, with fewer than 3 per cent operating on time.
The size of the backlog depends on the date and the counting method, and the outlets do not fully agree. Around 29 September the airline's chief executive acknowledged about 5,000 stranded bags and promised to clear them within 72 hours, according to AeroTime. TravelMole and Aviation Today cited about 5,600 bags at that point, and later reporting from several outlets put the peak above 10,000 items of baggage and cargo. The Thai Examiner's 5 October report counted more than 12,000 delayed bags in total across outbound and inbound flows, including 7,175 outbound and 5,423 inbound. These figures may measure different things, such as bags at a single moment versus cumulative delayed bags, and none of the outlets explains the difference.
The airline cut its schedule to match the staff it had. Aviation Today reported that around 30 per cent of Bangkok departures were trimmed and cargo operations suspended. The Thai Examiner reported capacity reductions of up to 40 per cent. Fifteen flights were cancelled on 1 October and nine on 2 October, according to AeroTime and Aviation Today, with full schedule restoration planned for 3 October.
The recovery effort
Thai Airways did not handle the backlog alone. The Royal Thai Air Force and other military personnel were brought in, and Thailand Post helped sort bags and deliver them to homes and hotels, according to AeroTime. Airports of Thailand also assisted, according to AeroTime. The Thai Examiner counted 131 military personnel assigned. Some ground-handling work was shifted to other service providers.
The figures published on 5 October show the effort working. The Thai Examiner reported that delayed bags had fallen to 562 by 5 October, with its breakdown listing 150 outbound and 712 inbound bags, a mismatch the report does not explain, and that flights were back at normal levels, with 122 inbound and 123 outbound services. The cargo backlog was reported cleared.
The Examiner's account of the causes goes beyond the weather. It listed defective baggage carts and staff shortages alongside the flooding as contributing factors. That is a single outlet's reading, and the board has not published a finding on it.
Pressure from the government
The decision followed several days of public pressure. According to AeroTime, Tourism and Sports Minister Surasak Phancharoenworakul inspected the airport on 30 September and said executives who could not resolve the situation should resign. Aviation Today quoted him as saying "If they don't want to do the job, then resign." AeroTime reported that he also accused the airline of giving priority to baggage for partner airlines over its own passengers, in order to avoid contractual penalties. That is the minister's allegation as reported; the airline's response to it was not detailed in the coverage reviewed.
AeroTime also reported that the deputy transport minister pressed for an urgent board meeting. The board met on the Friday.
The inquiry
The board set up a fact-finding committee on the operational crisis. AeroTime and Aviation Today described its remit as examining management responsibility, the airline's preparedness and contingency arrangements, and how ground handling held up. The Thai Examiner reported that Deputy National Police Chief Pol Gen Thatchai Pitaneelaboot had been assigned as investigator.
A central line of inquiry is outsourcing. Aviation Today reported that the board is looking at the use of subcontractors for ground handling and cargo, including whether functions were passed down through several layers of external contractors. Globe Thailand reported that the airline has committed to re-examining its management structure and reviewing employment arrangements for ground and warehouse staff, particularly around subcontracting. For a carrier that came out of rehabilitation with a leaner cost base, the question of how many frontline roles sit with third parties, and how reliably those workers can be reached in an emergency, goes to the heart of the operating model.
The airline's recent record
The disruption came at a delicate point in the airline's recovery. Thai Airways filed for court rehabilitation in 2020, the court approved ending the process in June 2025, and shares resumed trading on 4 August 2025, according to the Thai Examiner and Globe Thailand. TravelMole and Aviation Today place the exit in August 2026, which conflicts with those dates; this article follows the 2025 timeline.
The Thai Examiner listed a 2025 net profit of 30.91 billion baht and shareholders' equity of 75.83 billion baht, up from negative 43.35 billion baht at the end of 2023, with about 94 billion baht of debt repaid during rehabilitation.
The market did not read the change as alarming. Shares closed 0.05 baht higher at 5.70 baht on 2 October, up 0.88 per cent, on trading of about 706 million baht, according to Globe Thailand.
Competing views on the move
Not everyone is persuaded. The Thai Examiner reported that a former Nok Air chief executive, Patee Sarasin, publicly opposed the suspension, citing concern that bureaucratic control could return to the airline. The Examiner's headline framed the situation as a brewing crisis of confidence over management even as the operational crisis subsided. Globe Thailand reported a different background factor: the chief executive's contract was already nearing expiry and the airline was already looking for a permanent successor before the floods.
It is not yet clear whether the board's action is a final dismissal or a suspension pending the roughly 30-day inquiry, and no findings have been released on the subcontracting chain or the baggage carts.
What to watch next
The inquiry into the operational breakdown is expected to run about a month, which would put its conclusion in early November. The board must decide whether Samrit stays in the acting role or a permanent successor is named, and any change to how Thai Airways uses subcontracted ground and cargo labour would signal what the inquiry concluded. For travellers, schedules at Suvarnabhumi were reported back to normal as of 5 October. The harder test is whether the ground operation can absorb the next severe weather event without the same cascade.
Sources
- AeroTime, "Thai Airways CEO ousted after floods cripple its Bangkok hub"
- Aviation Today (India), "Thai Airways Removes CEO Amid Severe Flight And Baggage Disruptions In Bangkok"
- TravelMole, "Thai Airways CEO fired by board following luggage mismanagement"
- Globe Thailand, "Thai Airways Sacks CEO Over Flight Delays, Baggage Chaos"
- Thai Examiner, "Thai Airways boss fired by the board chaired by Finance Ministry chief on Friday over baggage crisis" (2 October) and "Thai Airways defeats flood crisis but finds itself in a brewing crisis of confidence over its management" (5 October)