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Thai Airways approves compensation for passengers hit by September floods

Passengers affected by flight delays, cancellations or delayed baggage during September flooding can seek compensation, with claims assessed individually.

NewsJaws DeskEditorial desk

Published 17 Oct 2026, 06:35 BST2 min read

A Thai Airways employee attaches a baggage tag to a passenger’s suitcase at the check-in counter. — Context photograph: A Thai Airways employee attaches a tag to passenger luggage during check-in at Suvarnabhumi International Airport near Bangkok, in 2007. VTBS-Check-In-baggage tags — User:Mattes (resized and converted to WebP). Public domain.Image source Image licence: Public domain

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Thai Airways International said on October 17 that its board had approved compensation for passengers affected by flight delays, cancellations and delayed baggage during flooding from September 26 to 30 at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport. The decision gives affected travellers a route to seek payment, although the airline said it would assess each claim individually rather than set a uniform award.

Who can claim compensation from Thai Airways

The measures cover three kinds of disruption during the five-day period: delayed flights, cancelled flights and baggage delivered late. Thai Airways said its assessment would take account of each passenger’s circumstances and actual losses under applicable laws and requirements. It has not specified compensation amounts or eligibility thresholds in the announcement described by the two reports.

Passengers whose flights were delayed or cancelled can submit compensation requests through the airline’s Flight Disruption webpage. The same route allows them to request documents supporting insurance claims. The reports do not establish whether delayed-baggage claims can be filed through that online form.

According to the Bangkok Post, passengers can also submit claims at Thai Airways’ Customer Care Centre on the first floor of Building 3 at its head office on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road in Bangkok. The centre is open daily, including weekends and public holidays, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thai Airways said it would expedite reviews and contact applicants with the outcome, but gave no fixed decision timetable.

How the September floods disrupted flights and baggage

Heavy rain and flooding in Bangkok and surrounding areas left the airline short of frontline staff. The Bangkok Post reported that about 200 Thai Airways employees could not reach work and more than 200 flights were cancelled. Military personnel were brought in to assist, but the shortage of trained baggage handlers continued to disrupt operations.

The Bangkok Post put the peak backlog at 25,000 bags; The Nation described earlier reports as estimating roughly 20,000 to 25,000. The Bangkok Post also reported that the board suspended chief executive Chai Eamsiri after delays in emergency procedures and the mobilisation of reserve staff. That suspension preceded the compensation decision.

The Nation reported that Thai Airways apologised for the hardship and inconvenience and described the compensation measures as an effort to take responsibility and ease the impact on passengers.