Searching For A Job? This Airline Just Fired Its CEO

Credit: KITTIKUN YOKSAP | Shutterstock Published Oct 2, 2026, 10:52 AM EDT Louis is a military historian and the staff writer for History of War magazine, a leading military history monthly. He also has an interest in private and commercial aviation. Sign in to your Simple Flying account Thai Airways International has fired its Chief Executive Officer. The removal of Chai Eamsiri comes after horrendous baggage issues at Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK). This crisis caused extended cancellations, stranded luggage and cargo disruption. Chai's tenure had previously been successful. He had managed the airline to a return to profitability, dragging it out of court supervision and back to normal Stock Exchange of Thailand trading. Director Samrit Samniang has now taken command. The Thai Government forced Thai Airways' hand. Government ministers had been mounting increasing pressure on Chai and the airline. The administration's hand reaches further still into the airline, with the nation's Ministry of Finance being the leading shareholder and the Permanent Secretary, Lavaron Sangsnit, being the airline's chairman. The Sacking Came After Thai Airways' Worst Recent Operation Crisis Chai's sacking brings an end to over 40 years of service with the airline, in which he gradually rose through the ranks and became the airline's CEO in 2023. He has a contract to serve as a company director until January 2027, but now has very little practical power. Chai's fall came after Thai Airways' worst crisis since the airline completed its rehabilitation under Chai. Bangkok was suffering from severe flooding and ground workers couldn't reach the city's airport. This led to a profound shortage of staffing. Bags rapidly accumulated, leading to a backlog that has been incredibly challenging to clear. According to Reuters, Chai told reporters, "They didn't give a reason...They want to see if there ​are gaps... mistakes in the work carried out." Thai Tourism Minister Surasak Phancharoenworakul has also said: "If they don't want to do the job, then resign." Simple Flying has contacted Thai Airways for comment. The entire process has the Thai Government's fingerprints all over it. It began with the crisis itself, with the Thai Government intervening by deploying the military and ThailandPost to provide assistance. Phancharoenworakul then visited the airport and was incredibly critical of the situation, particularly that Thai Airways staff were continuing to service partner airlines during the disruption. The table below shows the Thai Airways fleet, showing the scale of the operation that Chai was responsible for: Aircraft type In service Parked Total Future Airbus A320 19 1 20 Airbus A321 9 1 10 7 Airbus A330 5 1 6 Airbus A350 20 1 21 Boeing 777 17 1 18 Boeing 787 10 8 18 4 Total 80 13 93 11 Chai fell from his position after a Thai Airways board meeting. The airline is no longer formally a state enterprise but is far from being independent. Lavaron, chief of the Ministry of Finance, chaired this meeting. This government department is the largest individual shareholder at 38.9%. All Had Been Well For Thai Airways Before The Baggage Crisis Chai's scapegoating for the baggage crisis could prove expensive, as he has shown himself to be an incredibly competent administrator. His tenure has seen him oversee the rehabilitation of Thai Airways following financial collapse and restructuring. Chai's work as CEO began in 2023 with increases to passenger numbers to 13.76 million that year, a 52.7% growth. Chai also easily exceeded financial goals, achieving Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation (EBITDA) after lease payments of 42.88 billion Thai Baht ($1.31 billion), more than doubling the rehabilitation requirement of 20 billion ThaiBaht ($0.6 billion). The airline's successes continued the following year. Revenue, excluding one-off transactions, increased 16.7%. Operating profit also surpassed 40 billion Thai Baht ($1.2 billion). These successes allowed the carrier to petition the Central Bankruptcy Court to terminate rehabilitation in April 2025. Approval came in June 2025, bringing five years of restructuring under court supervision to an end.