All stranded travellers expected to return to Thailand by Wednesday

Travellers queue in the departure hall at Hong Kong international airport on Wednesday. (Bloomberg photo)

Thai Airways International switched to a bigger aircraft for its Bangkok-Hong Kong service on Wednesday, to bring all of its passengers stranded in the protest-hit airport back home.

THAI president Sumeth Damrongchaitham said on Wednesday the flag carrier was using a wider-body plane on the Bangkok-Hong Kong routes for flight TG638 and the return leg, TG639.

TG638 left Suvarnabhumi airport at 1.55pm and is scheduled to arrive at Hong Kong international airport at 5.40pm. The regular departure time from Hong Kong for TG639 is 7.07pm but FlightStates, a website that tracks flights, said it may be delayed to 11pm.

THAI normally operates an Airbus A330 plane for the flight. The airline did not give details of the aircraft it would use for Wednesday's flights.

THAI said it had also rescheduled flight TG602 from Hong Kong from 6.30pm on Wednesday to 2.50am on Thursday. It will arrive in Bangkok at 6.40am.

The airline brought 921 passengers from Hong Kong on Tuesday on four flights.

About 150 of the airline's passengers were stranded at Hong Kong airport on Wednesday and 60 passengers from other carriers, most of them Thais, wanted to fly home with THAI, it said.

"THAI expects to bring back all stranded passengers today," the airline said in the statement.

Government spokeswoman Narumon Pinyosinwat said on her Twitter account the government considered using airports in Macao, Shenzhen or Guangzhou as a backup plan to help Thai citizens return from Hong Kong.