Swampy To Be 'only Bangkok Airport'

[Crossy]

Thai Government To Use Suvarnabhumi As Single Bangkok Airport.

BANGKOK -(Dow Jones)- Thailand's government plans to use Suvarnabhumi as the single airport of the capital city Bangkok, head of the Transport Ministry's air transport rehabilitation and development panel said Thursday.

The government has yet to decide on the timing of the migration of operations at the old Don Mueang Airport to Suvarnabhumi but the panel expects to reach a tentative decision on the issue within this month, panel head Srisook Chandrangsu told reporters.

The ministry's plan is to use Don Mueang only for chartered flights and maintenance facilities while all scheduled commercial flights will be operated at Suvarnabhumi, he said.

Don Mueang currently serves some domestic flights to help ease traffic congestion at Suvarnabhumi.

-By Bangkok Bureau, Dow Jones Newswires; 662-266-0744; djnews.bangkok@ dowjones.com

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsStor...nternational.na

[mrtoad]

This must be in response the reduction of flights coming into Bangkok.

Shame, as I quite like have Don Muang open, as it's nearer to where I live, so convenient for certain flights.

[Scott]

Hmmm....a while ago things weren't going so smoothly with 2 airports. Now only 1?

[Ricardo]

This now makes sense, especially with the overall reduction in flights and passenger-numbers, as the global economic slowdown has its effect on long-haul travel.

It clearly is better for passengers if all domestic flights, from every domestic airport, can connect with all international flights, at the same airport.

However there is still a need for a low-cost terminal, for those passengers who don't need the more-expensive full-service facilities, and I hope that AAT finally makes a start of building this. It has already been announced a couple of times. It would make a good infrastructure investment, for a government seeking to spend money productively, to boost the economy.

Building a LCC-terminal will also release more existing gates for the regular full-price airlines, deferring any need for expensive expansion of the main terminal, by at least a few years.

[tw25rw]

The 2nd airport opening happened when the new one was very new and had teething problems and there were reports of a runway subsiding. Both runways are open now and the teething problems have been addressed, so it makes sense for it all to be together.

Before long there will be a rail link and eventually a whole new terminal as well.

[Spee]

The 2nd airport opening happened when the new one was very new and had teething problems and there were reports of a runway subsiding. Both runways are open now and the teething problems have been addressed, so it makes sense for it all to be together.

Before long there will be a rail link and eventually a whole new terminal as well.

These things are all well and good, but it costs money for airlines to move operations back and forth across town. Who is absorbing these costs? Most likely they will be passed on to the consumer at some point. Obviously the government decision makers calling these shots don't give two hoots about these kinds of impacts (regardless of the events of the past several months).

[londonthai]

let the airlines decide where they want to be, not the clueless government officials.

every major capital in the world has several airports, even in the case of emergency like fog or flooding. You don't want as well in the major airport a highjacked or a broken airplane trying to crash land.

another issue, still not address in swampy, is noise impact on neighbouring estates and villages.

[brahmburgers]

smart move. not just because there are fewer flights, but also because it's a stone drag for travelers to make the long slog from one airport to the other. Are those connecting drives free or is there a cost? Knowing Thailand, I'd assume the latter.

[Spee]

every major capital in the world has several airports, even in the case of emergency like fog or flooding.

Yeah, I agree. Tokyo Narita and Haneda and Osaka and Kansai come to mind.

I don't think there is any issue with having the domestic flights based out of DM and the international flights out of Suv. The issue is getting from one place to the other easily for a reasonable price. The Japanese definitely have it set up right for the Narita to Haneda transfer. Why should it be so difficult for Thailand.

DM is a tremendous national asset and should be utilized and maintained in some capacity, whether for private flights or charters or the domestic commercial market. Then there is the Suv noise issue.

I don't think having connecting domestic flights out of Suv is a bad thing. It should be pretty straight-forward to pick out the 2 or 3 biggest connecting flight volumes, such as Phuket and Chiang Mai. Then leave everything else out at DM.

In any case, I wish they would make up their minds and decide upon the final solution.

[brahmburgers]

I don't think there is any issue with having the domestic flights based out of DM and the international flights out of Suv. The issue is getting from one place to the other easily for a reasonable price. ...Why should it be so difficult for Thailand.

DM is a tremendous national asset and should be utilized and maintained in some capacity, whether for private flights or charters or the domestic commercial market. Then there is the Suv noise issue.

From the "Nobody Asked Me, But.... Dept." : Ever since I heard of SUV project, I wondered out loud why it was needed. The powers that be were like a greek chorus, all saying, in effect, "Thai tourism numbers will continue to grow vigorously, so there's no alternative but to build an expensive new airport for Bangkok." Well, here it is a couple years after its opening, and tourist numbers are lessening.

Maybe I'm too much a creature of habit, but I liked DM airport, and it appeared that, with some smart adjustments and investment, it could handle increased traffic. The gargantuan expenditure for SUV (including acres of roofs that don't keep the rain out), on property that could well be under water in 15 years, is just another sick manifestation of Thaksin's megalomania.

[UncleFrank]

I thought they moved because of cracks in the runway?

Most likely, that was anti Thaksin propaganda from the The Nation & Bangkok Post.

[bangon04]

I don't think having connecting domestic flights out of Suv is a bad thing. It should be pretty straight-forward to pick out the 2 or 3 biggest connecting flight volumes, such as Phuket and Chiang Mai. Then leave everything else out at DM.

In any case, I wish they would make up their minds and decide upon the final solution.

Since the LCC by definition are not offering connections to other airlines, surely it makes more sense to have them at DM with the lower landing / service fees. I suppose that was one of Thaksin's options to get control of DM for his own profit?

[tw25rw]

The present 2 airport situation was always temporary and is now no longer necessary.

[TJAN]

This must be in response the reduction of flights coming into Bangkok.

Shame, as I quite like have Don Muang open, as it's nearer to where I live, so convenient for certain flights.

But many people will be happy not to travel between airports any more.

[Ricardo]

I thought they moved because of cracks in the runway?

Most likely, that was anti Thaksin propaganda from the The Nation & Bangkok Post.

You must be a recent arrival ? Welcome to Thailand !

There have been many posts & articles on ThaiVisa, concerning cracks on taxiways, and out-of-order airbridges. There was a serious legal case, when the BP reported problems and were sued, before Swampy even opened. Many of us have, when passing through Swampy since it opened, seen the repairs underway to this brand-new facility.

So this is not a smear-campaign, dreamed up by the newspapers, unfortunately.

[marshbags]

This was a logical thing to do and should have happened some time ago.

Basically the change of mind is not.

It is a change of administration that will have influenced this change in policy.

It,s a win win situation for the majority of tourist and long term expats alike and i as one of them welcome this proposed change as and when it happens.

May it be soon, and save all the negatives we have suffered as a consequence of the last administrations greedy, thieving, self serving interests.......as is par for the course, yet again.

They are many, especially when you live up country and already have mega time on the road long haul, coming back is / has been a right pain, time wise ect.

marshbags

Edited January 9, 2009 by marshbags

[tartempion]

Re-opening Don Muang never made sense, DM only handles around 50 plane movements daily.

Swampy was not designed to handle that much traffic maybe ?

The tarmac and taxi ways problems were merely an excuse to reopen DM.

And my international/domestic travel is hindered by having to commute between both airports: it's a disgrace for this country

[londonthai]

there are 5 airports in and around London - there is a public and private transport between them, but not organised by the aviation authority. Travellers on the budget do choose smaller airports and travel between airport, because it saves them on airfare. BKK to DNM is only some 1h by taxi and some 250baht

[wileycoyote]

Providing they have space for all the carriers/flights from Don Muang ,this could possibly be a good thing !

[Spee]

Re-opening Don Muang never made sense, DM only handles around 50 plane movements daily.

Sorry, but this strikes me as one of many short-sighted opinions on the subject.

Twenty-five years ago, Chicago Midway was a dead airport for all intents and purposes. All it served was a small number of private planes and flights. Then Southwest Airlines came along with a new business model and completely transformed the place. In the last 20 years, the airport has undergone a number of expansions, justified the building of dedicated mass transit train path directly to downtown Chicago, and the airport is now operating at capacity of about 300 flights per day.

Almost 50 years ago, some people decided to build an airport out in the middle of nowhere, almost 30 miles west of Washington DC. These decision makers were ridiculed when the airport was dubbed a white elephant in the 1960's. But by the 1980's, the airport was right in the middle of everything and has undergone many expansions, including adding a 4th runway and proposing a 5th. The airport now handles more than 1000 flights per day and original construction costs seem like money well spent nowadays.

All it takes is a vision, looking at things in a different way than most people would and the will to make it happen.

DM offers the potential for many opportunities if it remains open, or at least well maintained and preserved. It offers nothing if closed, other than an excuse to tear down a valuable asset.

And my international/domestic travel is hindered by having to commute between both airports:

I don't think it's right to treat the 2 airport solution and the commuting problems between the them as a common issue. If there is a need for two airports and it makes sense to keep them both operational, then make that decision on its own merits. If the ground transport system sucks, then that is another problem to be dealt with on its own.

[Crossy]

I don't think it's right to treat the 2 airport solution and the commuting problems between the them as a common issue. If there is a need for two airports and it makes sense to keep them both operational, then make that decision on its own merits. If the ground transport system sucks, then that is another problem to be dealt with on its own.

One of my current 'paper' projects is an extension of the Bangkok Airport Rail Link round to Don Mueang which would provide a quick and reliable link between the airports. We were told two months ago that DMK would remain open for the 'forseeable future' hence my make up their minds comment. Design work will continue, I expect another policy reversal in say, six months

[tartempion]

I don't think it's right to treat the 2 airport solution and the commuting problems between the them as a common issue. If there is a need for two airports and it makes sense to keep them both operational, then make that decision on its own merits. If the ground transport system sucks, then that is another problem to be dealt with on its own.

Swampy was designed to handle both international and domestic traffic, there is a fairly big domestic terminal you know?

And that's how it should be

Having people commute between the two airports without any valid reason is surely brilliant add to that the expense of running two airport. (for who's benefit? The army who owns the place maybe?)

To counter your other example, 30 years ago and 50 miles West of Montreal they built a huge airport Mirabel, at incredible expropriation expenseand downgraded Dorval airport to domestic. They never went further than terminal 1, but did have the space for many more terminals. They built special passenger vehicles to bring passengers to the planes in all weather conditions. Today that marvellous airport is only used for charter and cargo.No one wants to drive that far.

[klfopera]

every major capital in the world has several airports, even in the case of emergency like fog or flooding.

Yeah, I agree. Tokyo Narita and Haneda and Osaka and Kansai come to mind.

I don't think there is any issue with having the domestic flights based out of DM and the international flights out of Suv. The issue is getting from one place to the other easily for a reasonable price. The Japanese definitely have it set up right for the Narita to Haneda transfer. Why should it be so difficult for Thailand.

DM is a tremendous national asset and should be utilized and maintained in some capacity, whether for private flights or charters or the domestic commercial market. Then there is the Suv noise issue.

I don't think having connecting domestic flights out of Suv is a bad thing. It should be pretty straight-forward to pick out the 2 or 3 biggest connecting flight volumes, such as Phuket and Chiang Mai. Then leave everything else out at DM.

In any case, I wish they would make up their minds and decide upon the final solution.

Leave everything else at DM? Puh-lease! This causes enormous wastes of time when you want to join a friend who lives up country (as in my friend's case KKC) and go together on an international flight. Because there are two airports there are fewer connecting flights; so a trip from HKT to Ubon which we used to be abale ton do with some efficiency is now a tremendous time waster.

[NanLaew]

This now makes sense, especially with the overall reduction in flights and passenger-numbers, as the global economic slowdown has its effect on long-haul travel.

It clearly is better for passengers if all domestic flights, from every domestic airport, can connect with all international flights, at the same airport.

However there is still a need for a low-cost terminal, for those passengers who don't need the more-expensive full-service facilities, and I hope that AAT finally makes a start of building this. It has already been announced a couple of times. It would make a good infrastructure investment, for a government seeking to spend money productively, to boost the economy.

Building a LCC-terminal will also release more existing gates for the regular full-price airlines, deferring any need for expensive expansion of the main terminal, by at least a few years.

AirAsia have quite happily been working out of BKK as the premier low-cost airline in the region and the 'B' gates are more that adequate for other low-cost carriers to use if they have the balls to do it. The new airport quite happily supports low-cost operations and if you have flown AirAsia in and out of BKK you would be aware that there is a considerably different level of support compared with your 'regular' airlines. The new airport can support low-cost and full-serve type operations under one roof. AirAsia proves that.

The fact that they are NOT a Thai-owned carrier probably explains why they stayed at BKK when political pressure was placed on TG and the Thai-owned low-cost carriers to relocate back to DMK with overstated problems with taxiways and ramps at BKK. This was all part of the Thaksin axe grind. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.

[mancon]

This now makes sense, especially with the overall reduction in flights and passenger-numbers, as the global economic slowdown has its effect on long-haul travel.

It clearly is better for passengers if all domestic flights, from every domestic airport, can connect with all international flights, at the same airport.

However there is still a need for a low-cost terminal, for those passengers who don't need the more-expensive full-service facilities, and I hope that AAT finally makes a start of building this. It has already been announced a couple of times. It would make a good infrastructure investment, for a government seeking to spend money productively, to boost the economy.

Building a LCC-terminal will also release more existing gates for the regular full-price airlines, deferring any need for expensive expansion of the main terminal, by at least a few years.

I agree with you Ricardo, but this as with everything else in Thailand will remain to be seen!

[PattayaParent]

"The ministry's plan is to use Don Mueang only for chartered flights and maintenance facilities while all scheduled commercial flights will be operated at Suvarnabhumi, he said."

So if an aircraft at Swampy needs some maintenance it will have to fly to DM and fly back again????

[toptuan]

"The ministry's plan is to use Don Mueang only for chartered flights and maintenance facilities while all scheduled commercial flights will be operated at Suvarnabhumi, he said."

So if an aircraft at Swampy needs some maintenance it will have to fly to DM and fly back again????

Only for major maintenance requirements. This plan follows the Seattle model: Sea-Tac for all domestic/international flights, light maintenance, and Boeing Field for charter and major maintenance. Often, a second maintenance airport, Paine Field, has served as a back-up for Boeing Field for emergencies and major maintenance needs.

This model has served them well for over 40 years.

[Spee]

So if an aircraft at Swampy needs some maintenance it will have to fly to DM and fly back again????

There can be more to that business model than just local service. DM could be a major international service center, for aircraft within something like a 1000 mile radius. I don't know if it's possible given the current political and economic environments. I'm not sure if I would invest in something like that if I had the money. But under the right circumstances it should be entirely feasible. In the ASEAN region, DM is more or less centrally located, has the 12k foot runways, and the infrastructure to support it. A local support facility wouldn't seem to make much sense, but a large regional support facility could.