Nok Air Ordered to Halt International Flights & Route Expansion — Safety Oversight Cited Ahead of ICAO Audit
What happened: On 25 Aug 2025, Thailand’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAAT) issued a formal directive to Nok Air, requiring the airline to:
Suspend all international routes immediately, and
Freeze any new route expansion or frequency increases (both domestic and international)
until the airline demonstrates effective corrective actions to address identified safety deficiencies.
The order comes in direct connection with the upcoming ICAO USOAP–CMA audit (Aug 27–Sep 8, 2025) and the Industry Visit on Sep 4, according to CAAT Director-General ACM Manat Chuanprayoon.
Reasons Cited by CAAT (per directive AOC.0006)
High incident/accident rate (2023–2025): Including Engine In-Flight Shutdowns (IFSDs), runway excursions, hard landings, and tail strikes. Most notably, repeated engine shutdowns in flight remain without conclusive root cause analysis (RCA).
Weak hazard/risk assessment: Safety risk evaluations were deemed insufficient for mitigating recurring hazards systematically.
Pilot & instructor attrition: Significant resignations among flight crew, instructor pilots, and examiners raise concerns over safety culture, morale, and continuity of competence within operations.
CAAT’s Corrective Action Requirements & Deadlines
Submit Root Cause Analysis (RCA) & Corrective Action Plan (CAP) for IFSD events and unresolved occurrences within 60 days.
Submit RCA & CAP addressing flight crew/instructor/examiner resignations within 30 days.
Strengthen FDAP/FDM (Flight Data Analysis/Monitoring) and SMS (Safety Management System) with measurable improvements, and submit a CAP within 30 days, followed by periodic progress reports until proven effective.
Nok Air’s Response
Domestic flights continue as normal, under CAAT oversight and ICAO/IATA safety standards (IOSA).
Technical: Claims to follow approved Boeing maintenance manuals, working closely with Boeing on troubleshooting.
Human resources: States pilot and instructor numbers remain adequate, with recurrent training as per ICAO/CAAT standards.
Clarification: Nok Air has not operated international routes since June 2025, but aims to reinstate them once corrective measures are validated, particularly ahead of the high-season travel period.
Why SMS, FDM & RCA Are Central Issues
SMS: A weak Safety Management System leads to repeated incidents because systemic risks are not identified and mitigated at organizational level.
FDM/FDAP: Without effective monitoring of real-world flight data, precursors to accidents (unstable approaches, exceedances, vibrations, etc.) remain invisible.
RCA + CAP: Without identifying the root cause, fixes remain superficial, leaving risks open to recurrence.
Human factors: High turnover erodes institutional knowledge, quality control in training/examination, and increases workload risks for remaining staff.
Short–Medium Term Implications
International passengers: Immediate impact is limited, as Nok Air had already paused international flights since June. But planned relaunches may now be delayed until CAAT and ICAO requirements are satisfied.
Domestic operations: Continue unaffected, but reputational pressure may intensify if further incidents occur.
National oversight credibility: The timing—just before ICAO’s audit—means CAAT’s handling of this case directly reflects on Thailand’s state safety oversight rating.
Timeline Snapshot
Aug 25, 2025: CAAT issues directive (AOC.0006) — suspending international ops, freezing expansions, ordering RCA/CAP with 30–60 day deadlines.
Aug 27–Sep 8, 2025: ICAO USOAP–CMA audit window (with Industry Visit on Sep 4).
Aug 29–30, 2025: Media outlets confirm details of the order and Nok Air’s responses.
What to Watch Next
Whether Nok Air delivers complete RCA/CAPs within the 30/60-day deadlines.
Quality of FDM/SMS enhancement plans, including KPIs such as reducing exceedance and hard-landing rates.
Trends in pilot/instructor staffing — attrition, hiring, and recurrent training compliance.
ICAO audit outcome — any remarks on Thailand’s regulatory enforcement may carry long-term industry consequences.
Nok Air’s communication strategy — transparency in reporting progress could influence public and regulatory confidence.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
