Thailand’s national flag-carrier Thai Airways is reportedly seeking to push back the deadline for submitting its rehabilitation plan by a month.

On December 25, 2020, Chansin Treenuchagron, the Director and Acting President of Thai Airways, said the carrier would ask the Central Bankruptcy Court to postpone the submission deadline of its financial rehabilitation plan, from January 2 to February 2, 2021, according to the Nation.

The airline is currently under financial rehabilitation process approved by the Central Bankruptcy Court on September 14, 2020. The Court granted Thai Airways business reorganization petition and appointed the planners who were expected to submit the plan to the Court within the fourth quarter of 2020.

Despite the submission postponement, the airline was confident in its ability to carry out the plan successfully, Treenuchagron said, Thai local media reported.

According to Thai Airways analysts briefing, the rehabilitation plan provides more advantage than the company's liquidation. The plan allows the company to continue business in hopes of “fair” debt repayment for all creditors.

“According to the rehabilitation laws, the creditors will be classified into classes (depending on the debt characteristics) and the creditors under the same class must be repaid on the same scheme,” the airline’s briefing read. 

Debts incurred up to the issuance of the Court order for business rehabilitation will be included in the rehabilitation plan and paid for in accordance with such plan during the implementation period, which is expected to start in the end of March 2021.

According to rehabilitation law, Thai Airways must fully implement the rehabilitation plan in five years once it is submitted and approved by the Court.

Thai Airways is facing a financial crisis due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The airline has made a net loss of 28 billion baht ($927 million) in the first half of 2020. The third quarter of 2020 shows a net loss of 21.53 billion baht ($713 million), according to Thai Airways financial statements.

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