Utapao Airport Proposed Upgrade Following Recent Bangkok Airport Closures.

[kurgen]

Following the recent closures of the airports in Bangkok due to Political demonstrations, Utapao Airport which is located in Pla District in Rayong Province accommodated many International Flights as carriers were determined to help stranded international passengers.

The airport is only a 45 minute drive from Pattaya and following the recent events at the Military controlled airport, it appears that the Royal Navy would like to use the airport for more International flights in the future.

On Wednesday Morning, Rear Admiral Worasak, the Deputy Commander of the First Naval Area Command held an informal meeting with Khun Itipon, the Mayor of Pattaya at Pattaya City Hall to discuss plans to rename the airport.

Utapao Airport will soon become the Utapao Pattaya International Airport if plans are approved by the Military.

Khun Itipon is very interested in this potential upgrade of the airport and offered his support to the change which has a long way to go before it becomes official.

Pattaya One News

[londonthai]

good news, in case anything happens in bangkok, there is a convenient alternative.

besides changing the name of the airport, they should invest in an infrastructure as well as transport to the airport

[Chang_paarp]

Call me a cynic, but I think they can see a revenue stream happening here.

There should be enough dodgy leaks for plenty of tea.

[LennyW]

I thought that this had already been discussed / decided, (according to earlier press reports anyway) about two weeks before the swampy seige???

[Rimmer]

For visitors to Pattaya it's great. I used to fly Bangkok Airways Singapore/ UTP but was often the only passenger on the flight. Great service and attentive staff.

Suspect all the airport upgrades in the world will not bring in the passengers without a good rail link to Bangkok or at least a Motorway. Both are possible as the rail line goes all the way down there and the motorway is creeping down that way. No one wants to make a 5 hour flight and then have a further 5 hour drive to get to their hotel or business meeting.

[MeetJohnDoe]

Yep...any time concrete is poured there is lots of money to be skimmed-off.

[londonthai]

Suspect all the airport upgrades in the world will not bring in the passengers without a good rail link to Bangkok or at least a Motorway. Both are possible as the rail line goes all the way down there and the motorway is creeping down that way.

there is a motorway - from sukhumwit in bangkok it's some 2.5h ride. Problem that there is only mafia from pattaya operating transport to the airport, no regular, low cost buses.

Certainly good for patters and all the east board tourism.

As to pouring concrete - utapao has the longest runway in se asia (probably for the large bombers), just there is no decent terminal.

[grahamhc]

This was in the planning before the "Rescue Flight" period, and the story appeared in the Pattaya Mail in this uissue: http://www.pattayamail.com/800/news.shtml#hd4

As for robbing Swampy's crown, I think the following clip will dispel that thought

"It is being upgraded to international airport standard by expanding the terminal area from a capacity for 150 to 400 passengers with a usage area of 2,610 square meters. This includes 50 aircraft being supported according to current international airport standards.

It will have a runway measuring 3,505 x 60m2, a location for parking measuring 432,300m2, including a fire engine, rescue vehicles, an ambulance, a cabin car, a garbage truck, a shuttle bus, and an SSR (secondary surveillance radar) system. It has a security system that is just as good as that of the Don Muang Airport."

[londonthai]

utapao would never match bangkok airport, but as we have seen recently, was able to operate a large deal of flights transfered from bangkok even with it's limited resources. The next time, if anything happens in Bangkok, with all the experience and the new equipment put in, it can handle even more passengers.

the meeting was after the re-opening of Bangkok airports and was about changing those original plans of expantion, which you quote.

"a" probably is just only a bad translation