Dept of Airports launches 10-year plan to increase air traffic capacity

 

 

BANGKOK, 2 January 2018 (NNT) - The Department of Airports has launched a 10-year plan to increase the capacity of its airports, following anticipation of tourism growth as well as the lifting of restrictions imposed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). 

The tourism industry in 2017 is expected to have attracted no less than 35 million foreign tourists, bringing in approximately 2.76 trillion baht. Meanwhile, the ICAO has lifted its red flag on Thailand's civil aviation industry. 

Various airlines, especially low-cost airlines, have therefore expressed a desire to open regional flights under the oversight of the Department of Airports. As a result, the department is moving forward with a 10-year plan to invest 38 billion baht to increase the annual capacity of 28 airports to 30 million passengers in 2025 and 58 million in 2035. 

The department's goals include expanding air access, accommodating increased traffic, adhering to international standards, and effective governance, in order to make Thailand an aviation hub of the region.

 

-- nnt 2018-01-02

i needed a laugh this morning, here it is.

adhering to international standards, and effective governance, in order to make Thailand an aviation hub of the region.

20 hours ago, webfact said:

The Department of Airports has launched a 10-year plan to increase the capacity of its airports

Isn't capacity already being surpassed?

For example:

• "The plan for Suvarnabhumi includes adding a concourse to the existing terminal complex by 2020, a third runway the following year and a new international terminal in 2022" - AoT  President Nitinai Sirismatthakarn.
• The extra concourse at Suvarnabhumi -- also called a satellite terminal -- would take capacity to 60 million [currently at 45 million] and "just catch up with current demand" since the airport is handling more people than it’s designed for - ditto

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-27/lure-of-azure-waters-and-bangkok-nightlife-strains-thai-airports

The 3rd runway was "greenlited" in 2012, importance recognized by the junta in 2014 but deferred now planned for 2022 although it will take six years to build.. http://www.thailand-construction.com/bangkoks-suvarnabhumi-airport-finally-scheduled-to-get-third-runway/

 

 

Just staff the passport booths for a start.

22 hours ago, webfact said:

a 10-year plan to invest 38 billion baht to increase the annual capacity of 28 airports to 30 million passengers in 2025

 

Either Don Muang or Suvarnabhumi already handles more than 30 million per-annum each, so cannot be included in this total annual capacity figure, or it should be much much higher ?

 

Please can the Department of Airports also speed-up work at these two main Thai airports, so that flights from the regional airports (which they're presumably talking about in this article) have somewhere to land again, expanding the regional airports is only part of what's needed !

 

The two Thai hubs need to be grown, as part of their plan !  And that's all coming through way too  s l o w l y  , at present !  For example the third-runway at Swampy is already needed right now, just look at the delays/cancellations whenever maintenance is needed on one of the existing two, let alone with the new terminal-extension under-construction right now !

Edited January 3, 20188 yr by Ricardo

Wow , I was not aware of 28 Thai airports , a list as follows en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_airports_in_Thailand .

I have a feeling that the tourist figures for this country have peaked and that the attempted clean up adult related establishments / bars etc will encourage folk to look at other up and coming countries that are also a much cheaper alternative and visa friendly .

            Having said that I would greatly support the promotion of regional airports that would enable flights within Thailand to a local destination without having to start from Bangkok . Secondly I was hoping that the talk , about 2 years ago , of a new international airport near Surin would have been mentioned ( apparently Emirates were involved )