Safety & Health
SAFETY & HEALTH
"Safety" is of utmost importance in the aviation industry and is our top priority. In the aviation business, fallibility might lead to severe impact to lives and belongings of guests and staff, as well as to business reputation and reliability.
Thai AirAsia monitors and controls the safety of our operations through a Safety Management System (SMS) designed specifically according to the airline's requirements to ensure our guests have the utmost confidence in us. We are determined to develop, implement, maintain and adapt our strategies and processes in the interest of safety and in adherence to national and international standards, promising safety to our guests alongside low fares and comfort.
The Company is committed to developing operations and adapting these aspects to ensure the highest safety performance for our customers and all involved. This commitment is reflected in our Safety Policy, Safety Management System, and training of employees and contractors, as well as in our Safety Culture. The Company regularly reviews and monitors its operations to ensure compliance with its policies and the Safety, Occupational Health, and Environment at Work Act B.E. 2554 (2011).
Safety Management System: SMS
The Company maintains a Safety Management System (SMS) that regularly adjusts its safety policies and reinforces a safety culture to ensure reliable and safe flights. The SMS complies with requirements set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and aligns with the State Safety Policy (SSP) of the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT). The Company’s Chief Executive Officer is the designated accountable executive for The Company’s SMS, and our Board of Directors receives quarterly updates on key safety performance.
Parameters of the Safety Management System (SMS)
Comprising of four main pillars:
Safety Policies and Objectives
Safety Risk Management
Two steps are observed to manage and handle safety risks:
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Hazard Identification:
The seeking and identification of procedures, causes and elements that may lead to an accident, as well as the collection, analysis and systematic dissemination of such information.
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Safety Risk Assessment and Mitigation:
The carrying out of Safety Risk Assessments with elements deemed beyond the acceptable risk to be analysed for protection and mitigation measures.
Safety Promotion
Thai AirAsia understands that safety must be embedded into its organisational culture and is resolute in instilling safety practices across the whole workforce so that everyone remains vigilant. This is carried out through the following activities:
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Training and Education:
In accordance with the law, all staff must have the knowledge and expertise necessary to fulfil the safety requirements of their duties.
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Safety Communication:
Activities are organised to communicate and disseminate safety know-how and to build understanding and awareness.
Safety Performance
Thai AirAsia systematically manages safety and receives cooperation from the 4,962 employees across all of its departments. The coordinated effort allows the Company to meet all of its safety targets and improved the Company safety performance, as shown in the table below:
| Safety Performance Indicators (SPIs) - Thai AirAsia Employees | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Target | Result | Target | Result | Target | Result | |
| Working hours | 2,681,784 *Reduction in work hours due to COVID-19 pandemic | 7,119,580 | 9,446,608 | |||
| Number of work-related accidents | - | 10 | - | 29 | - | 11 |
| Accident rate | 4.96 | 4.17 | 5.51 | 4.49 | 4.04 | 4.45 |
| Fatality no. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fatality rate | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. of work-related disease | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Work-related disease rate | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.11 |
| No. of lost time injury | - | 5 | - | 8 | - | 11 |
| Lost time injury frequency rate (LTIFR) | 1.94 | 2.08 | 1.65 | 1.12 | 1.12 | 1.16 |
The heightened rate of lost time injury was due to a significant increase in flights and service. All incidents were analysed for cause and repeat prevention and used as case studies to reinforce employee vigilance.
Controls on the operations of contractors and partners are imposed to prevent work-related dangers for all involved. Indicators are as follows:
| Safety Performance Indicator (SPIs) - Contractors | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Target | Result | Target | Result | Target | Result | |
| Working hours | 1,001,875 | 1,255,639 | 1,779,096 | |||
| Number of work-related accidents | - | 1 | - | 6 | - | 3 |
| Accident rate | 0.80 | 0.42 | 0.28 | 0.93 | 0.84 | 1.05 |
| Fatality no. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fatality rate | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. of work-related disease | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Work-related disease rate | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. of lost time injury | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lost time injury frequency rate (LTIFR) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Airline Safety and Security Systems
Thai AirAsia utilises three efficiently coordinated safety and security systems together aimed at minimising injury and damage in the workplace and to bolster the confidence of airline staff and passengers.
Quality Management
Focuses on keeping practices in accordance with regulations and passenger expectations while also including operational demands and possible dangers. In the short term, Quality Management emphasises requirement compliance and control to fit needs.
Quality Assurance
Focuses on ensuring pre-service quality and involves the following:
- Development
- Resource inspection
- Safety inspection with an emphasis on effective risk control
- Personnel inspection (includes external vendors)
- Regulation compliance inspection
Safety Assurance
Promotes quality through analysis, document control and inspection, looking to assure compliance with standards. While Safety Management focuses on safety efficiency, Safety Assurance is about identifying threats to safety, assessing risks and carrying out controls to prevent accidents and incidents.
Safety Management encompasses safety assurance and quality assurance and has the following stipulations:
- Regulation Compliance Control
- Operations requirements identification, improvements to safety and areas of danger and management of changes that may affect operations
Security
In protecting civil aviation and against illegal interventions, we are constantly developing and addressing issues to maintain compliance with international conditions. We carry out regular safety and risk assessments and use the data to reaffirm our safety measures. We survey, inspect and thoroughly test our safety and flight operations systems, following quality control plans set out by Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) so that we can be confident that all issues are addressed promptly.
Food Safety
In-Flight Products and Services and Food Safety
Food safety concerns the management, storage and preparation of meals to safeguard against dangerous contamination as well as assurance that meals contain adequate nutrition.
Thai AirAsia operates its own food warehouse to ensure the safety of its meals. The facility meets International Flight Services Association (IFSA) standards, the food regulations of destinations such as China and Europe and the requirements of Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration.
Standards & Compliance
Food Safety Regulation
Over 1 million in-flight meals are served to passengers by Thai AirAsia each year, making it a priority that each meal meet all four dimensions of safety; physical, biological, chemical and allergenic, in accordance with the Good Hygiene Practice (GHP) requirements of the CODEX standard. Thai AirAsia’s In-Flight Service unit was verified by the British Standards Institution as meeting its latest requirements in 2023.
Overall In-Flight Services Process
Airline Catering Operation Chain
Food Safety Regulation
Over 1 million in-flight meals are served to passengers by Thai AirAsia each year, making it a priority that each meal meet all four dimensions of safety; physical, biological, chemical and allergenic, in accordance with the Good Hygiene Practice (GHP) requirements of the CODEX standard. Thai AirAsia’s In-Flight Service unit was verified by the British Standards Institution as meeting its latest requirements in 2023.
Overall In-Flight Services Process
Airline Catering Operation Chain
Sustainability during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Thai AirAsia continued its plans and measures set during the beginning of the pandemic to respond to all scenarios in the interest of the safety of its employees, customers and the stakeholders throughout its supply chain. The Company established a special committee for the MOC, issued a Business Continuity plan for the pandemic, and compiled a COVID-19 Operational Guidance Handbook for flight operations and cabin crews.
Prevention of Employee Infection
In accordance with the Emergency Decree for occupational health and well-being of employees and for business continuity during the pandemic, the People and Culture Department issued a policy requiring staff adhere to all applicable government and company regulations and announced regular updates on practices and measures based on the latest national situation.
Guidelines for Employees
The Corporate Safety Department provided guidelines to employees on hygiene and communal well-being while the People and Culture Department issued policy for employees to stringently adhere to government and company measures, regularly updating employees based on the latest national situation.
Moreover, the Company asked employees to exercise personal responsibility by following all government prescribed prevention measures, maintaining their health while working to their fullest capability and selfassessing their health status both on work days and days off as to provide accurate reports.