The Airport Saga

[naka]

In today's Bangkok Post they say :-

The board of Airports of Thailand is to decide today if it will invite non-connecting international flights

to return to Don Mu(e)ang airport to relieve congestion at Suvarnabhumi.

And then :-

Suvarnabhumi was designed to serve up to 45 million passengers annually. But this year's traffic

is expected to rise to 46.7 million passengers, from 43.12 million last year.

Geeez ... The place has just opened ... after 40 years of "planning" ... now it's too small !

In the land of the blind, the man with one eye is a king.

Naka.

[lazeeboy]

In today's Bangkok Post they say :-

The board of Airports of Thailand is to decide today if it will invite non-connecting international flights

to return to Don Mu(e)ang airport to relieve congestion at Suvarnabhumi.

And then :-

Suvarnabhumi was designed to serve up to 45 million passengers annually. But this year's traffic

is expected to rise to 46.7 million passengers, from 43.12 million last year.

Geeez ... The place has just opened ... after 40 years of "planning" ... now it's too small !

In the land of the blind, the man with one eye is a king.

Naka.

a bit like the m25 in england designed years ago ,when it opened it was too small

[blizzard]

anyone notice how the airport looks like it is falling apart. just the cosmetic things. seems you guys are right when you say thais not really up to par on bldg. maintnance.

i hope the structural aspects are not.

[Sanpatong]

I arrived in a full 747 around midnight last week. No gates!!! Everyone into buses.

Still, I think the military is behind it who want their cash-cow Don Muang back.

Anyone with half a brain and an ounce of vision would go the extra mile and do Suvarnabhumi PROPERLY. Honestly, they're 90% there. Add some gates and they're done.

EDIT: Also 'Non connecting internatioinal flights'... Please. That's utter claptrap, how would anyone know that passengers on ANY flight are only going to Bangkok and not connecting to, say, Samui.

[samran]

heheh

buy AOT shares fellas....

[wileycoyote]

I agree with Sanpatong.

All domestic flights are potentially connecting to international.

Unless "insanely" they deem only TG as the only domestic/international carrier.

To be honest ,what is the point of European tour operators launching their brochures a year in advance ,if the shambles that was this year, is to replayed next year by tourists have reschedules ,transfers between airports and long waiting times.Have anyone canvassed passengers as to what they want ?

Statistics show that European holidaymakers are voting with their feet and choosing other destinations.

Visit Malaysia has been a resounding success ,Singapore is an aggressive tactician in attracting tourists,particularly stopover traffic.

Tourism is vital to the economy and should be cherished not played about with.

Does anybody in TAT & AOT care about growth and potential ?

Or is that a rhetorical question ?

Disappointed Wiley Coyote

[samran]

I agree with Sanpatong.

All domestic flights are potentially connecting to international.

Unless "insanely" they deem only TG as the only domestic/international carrier.

To be honest ,what is the point of European tour operators launching their brochures a year in advance ,if the shambles that was this year, is to replayed next year by tourists have reschedules ,transfers between airports and long waiting times.Have anyone canvassed passengers as to what they want ?

Statistics show that European holidaymakers are voting with their feet and choosing other destinations.

Visit Malaysia has been a resounding success ,Singapore is an aggressive tactician in attracting tourists,particularly stopover traffic.

Tourism is vital to the economy and should be cherished not played about with.

Does anybody in TAT & AOT care about growth and potential ?

Or is that a rhetorical question ?

Disappointed Wiley Coyote

I don't see what the problem is. Let the airlines choose what they want to do and is best for their business. The best for their business, is of course, what passengers want given the cutthroat nature of the industry. We've got two perfectly good assets here, lets use them to their maximum capacity.

[MeaMaximaCulpa]

In the land of the blind, the man with one eye is a king.

Or.... he is a mutant freak?

[samran]

London functions perfectly well with several airports.

No reason why it can't be done here although the point is it shouldn't have to be done with relocation to a new area and brand new airport having billions spent on it! That should have been sufficient for many years to come.

one could argue that the new one should have never been built in the first place. The old one needed a make over and an extra terminal and it could have done the job. Would have cost 1/10th of the new one, which means only 1/10 of the money to skim...

[wileycoyote]

I agree with Samran

Don Muang worked,why re-invent the wheel ?

OH I forgot we are forgetting Mr Taksin !

[zink]

EDIT: Also 'Non connecting internatioinal flights'... Please. That's utter claptrap, how would anyone know that passengers on ANY flight are only going to Bangkok and not connecting to, say, Samui.

Flights are connecting IF and only IF they are written on the same ticket. Low cost carriers like Air Asia, offer only point-to-point flights. If you have two separate tickets, you have two separate flights, and you are already taking a huge risk if you plan to change between them in just a couple of hours.

If your Air Asia flight is few hours late, and you miss your flight back to your home country, nobody will compensate you anything...

[zink]

To be honest ,what is the point of European tour operators launching their brochures a year in advance ,if the shambles that was this year, is to replayed next year by tourists have reschedules ,transfers between airports and long waiting times.Have anyone canvassed passengers as to what they want ?

Statistics show that European holidaymakers are voting with their feet and choosing other destinations.

Which European tour operators use Air Asia or other airline flying from the old airport to fly their package tourists from Bangkok??? Those who organize tours to Phuket, fly charter flights directly there. For Samui, they use Bangkok Airways that will still use new airport. For Chiang Mai, they are probably using Bangkok Airways/Thai Airways, once again these flights take off from the new airport.

Reopening Don Muang for international traffic is a very good thing. It give new airport more capacity and makes it easier for Air Asia and other low cost operators to expand.

[Shah Jahan]

Reopening Don Muang for international traffic is a very good thing. It give new airport more capacity and makes it easier for Air Asia and other low cost operators to expand.

Moving air Asia to DM would be a disaster

Air Asia staying at Suwana has been th only good thing about the dual airports

I frequency come it from CM and catch an international flight out

Thai is inconvenient timed or fully booked - so that really only leaves Air Asia to get into BKK for my flight

If Air Asia moves to DM, it will kill their domestic traffic which is slaying the competition due to the fact that they fly into the new airport and people can transfer.

Air Asia is really a Sh==ty airline with the pushing to get onboard, but I fly them the most because their timing and location is good and there are always seats on an hours notice

[pointofview]

Heathrow 1,2,3,and 4, Gatwick, Luton.

Build a new airport and keep the old one open - gives extra capability.

Thai thinking: build new airport, close old airport. After thought - re-open old airport.

Not the brightest pebbles on the beach the thais