Thailand to stop permitting foreign pilots on domestic routes next year

CAAT also acknowledged the difficulties unemployed local pilots face in securing jobs and pledged to assist them, the South China Morning Post reported, citing Thai Pilots Association President Teerawat Angkasakulkiat.

Teerawat said the association is cautiously optimistic about CAAT’s assurance that the measure will end this year and welcomes its support for local pilots.

"We are thrilled about CAAT’s job-enhancing initiatives for Thai pilots, including backing those seeking roles abroad," he said, as quoted by Thaiger.

The association filed a lawsuit against the country’s Labour Ministry last week, seeking a ban on foreign pilots from working on domestic flight routes. It was challenging the cabinet’s decision in December to temporarily permit the employment of foreign pilots in Thailand under wet lease agreements to accommodate the surge in tourism, as reported by Thai newspaper The Nation.

Teerawat pointed out that the temporary measure does not specify a limit to the number of permitted jets under these contracts or a clear deadline, instead capping each wet lease agreement at six months and allowing a one-time extension of another six months.

This could prompt airlines to push for the measure’s return next year as some of them find it easier to bring in pilots from parent companies rather than hire locally, he explained.

It also violates existing laws that prohibit foreigners from operating domestic flights and might cause international aviation organizations to tighten oversight on the country, he said.

The association previously warned that the measure could get Thailand red-flagged by the International Civil Aviation Organization, which would limit Thai carriers’ international operations.

It could affect the careers of 5,000 local pilots, of whom 1,700 are currently unemployed, Teerawat added, according to the Bangkok Post.

According to Labour Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, the ministry assisted 26 Thai pilots in securing jobs with Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific.

The initiative is part of a broader plan to place 100,000 Thais, including 1,000 pilots, in overseas jobs this year in several key markets, including Japan, Israel, Hong Kong, and Macau.