New Airport Advantages

[The Coder]

From a passenger perspective, I've always found Don Muang serves my needs as an airport fine without any issues to speak of. So what can we look forward to on the new airport that will be better from a passenger perspective? And what are the things Thailand believes it will gain by building it? Some cynical remarks are ok like padding officials pockets but I am really interested in knowing why if Don Muang aint broke why they are mothballing it and pouring massive bahts into a seemingly duplicate airport with funds the country could desperately use elsewhere. Basically, I would like to understand how a new airport makes sense so I don't just shake my head everytime issues regarding it pop up in the news.

[BaanOz]

Hate the thought of having to commute from the new airport seeing we live close to Don Muang.

[SiamOne]

Don Muang is near capacity, and too close to the city. Too many jams to get there also.

I think they want to make the new airport a regional hub. This would bring in big money!! Also they want to expand the regions flights, so extra runways are a good thing for that. It will be easier to expand the new airport, unlike DM.

[ovenman]

And what are the things Thailand believes it will gain by building it?

Face, I'm sure. There have always been astronomical estimates of how passenger traffic through/to Bangkok will increase exponentially with the new airport, but I have never seen any basis for this belief other than an "if you build it, they will come" mindset.

Some cynical remarks are ok like padding officials pockets but I am really interested in knowing why if Don Muang aint broke why they are mothballing it and pouring massive bahts into a seemingly duplicate airport with funds the country could desperately use elsewhere.

I honestly think that spending massive amounts of money and ensuring that the appropriate pockets are lined in the process is the overriding concern for a big project such as this. Consider that this airport project has been on the books since 1960. Thailand has managed to "limp along" with Don Muang for the past forty-five years. It's hard to imagine that getting this new airport up-and-running is in any sense critical.

[Old Croc]

I don't know the design of the new airport or much about traffic problems around the old one, but aircraft handling and pax movement through the transit area of Don Muang are abominable.

I know it is one of the regions busiest airports, but the system of parking planes miles from the terminal and transporting pax jammed like sheep in hot, smelly, crappy buses several miles and dropping them at a door which can still be half a kilometre or more from Immigration control is pathetic.

Have you people who think the place is fine heard of the system of moving pax direct from the aircraft to transit via fingers? Bangkok is the only major airport I have ever used that has these buses and I have been through some of the busiest in the world. The transporting of pax from plane to carpark and vice versa is a design science. DM is a nightmare, hopefully the new place is ultra modern and equal to some of the best in Asia.

Don Muang is very broke and needs replacing.

Edited August 29, 2005 by Old Croc

[Nordlys]

Have you people who think the place is fine heard of the system of moving pax direct from the aircraft to transit via fingers? Bangkok is the only major airport I have ever used that has these buses and I have been through some of the busiest in the world.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Right. Just got on one of those buses on my return flight from Tokyo on JAL last week. But this happens at Narita airport in Japan too when flying Northwest, both for boarding and disembarkation (and sometimes in the rain!).

[ovenman]

...but the system of parking planes miles from the terminal and transporting pax jammed like sheep in hot, smelly, crappy buses several miles and dropping them at a door which can still be half a kilometre or more from Immigration control is pathetic.

I think they use that system to keep a bunch of people employed more so than because of any capacity problems (the bus drivers, the people who stand at the bottom of the stairs by the plane and point to the bus that you would heve never seen on your own, etc). Next time you arrive at a Don Muang international bus gate, look at the number of empty gates at the two international terminal buildings. Then ask yourself why the plane parked half-way to downtown Bangkok and you are riding the crappy bus to the terminal.

The domestic terminal is another story. They don't have enough domestic gates to handle the volume of traffic with all of the low-cost airlines now flying.

[ovenman]

But this happens at Narita airport in Japan too when flying Northwest, both for boarding and disembarkation (and sometimes in the rain!).

Not enough Northwest gates at Narita but the situation is actually much improved from several years ago when the only Northwest gates were the now-defunct gates numbered in the 40s.

[taxexile]

don meuang is worse than an upcountry bus station.

its too small ,outdated , dirty and crumbling and both the departure and arrival halls are areas of total chaos at busy times , with little effort made to help passengers find their way around.

checking in and security arrangements are frustrating to say the least.

the taxi system is a joke and the car parking arrangements are prehistoric.

driving in or out of the airport is difficult with poor signage and on /off ramps.

restaurant facilities and waiting ares are disgraceful.

it has outlived its usefulness.

for visitors to thailand , first impressions are poor.

a new up to date airport is both necessary and long overdue.

[simon43]

Hmm, never had any problems at DM. Usually park in domestic, small car-park but the attendants always manage to squeeze me in I have sometimes used the taxis and limousines, very quick and efficient in all cases. Eaten many times in the restaurants and the food is no worse than farang airport meals. As for check-in etc, I never take any check-in luggage (even for going back to the UK for visits), so it's always been very quick!

I hope the new airport is as good as DM

[galt67]

Pattaya will SIGNIFICANTLY benefit from the new airport. Cutting the trip time in half will encourage many travelers to go straight to the city--avoiding staying in BKK.

[Jockstar]

Hate the thought of having to commute from the new airport seeing we live close to Don Muang.

I'm the same. I live in Lad Prao. So how much is a taxi gonna cost from the airport to wherever now?Lets say KSR at the moment around 200 baht. But how much would it cost to go from the other one? Seems such a long way out. The taxis are gonna have field day.

[Felix Lynn]

don meuang is worse than an upcountry bus station.

well, that settles it for me! that's a great quote. and a great topic, despite all the corruption stories and safety concerns many may have read about.

the location of the new airport isn't all that great but to build something that massive takes land and where else could they put it. if they do come through with the train directly to the terminal, that would a big advantage than having to drive to the old airport. LAX never linked the new train to the airport and it's a major drawback.

if the new airport can a handle "direct to terminal" disembarking instead of taking a bus to the terminal, that would be a big plus. but the bus thing is found even at the most advanced, gigantic airports.

compared to many world airports, don muang is rather a dingy, outdated place.

[The_Moog]

Airports of Thailand (AOT) have confirmed that Passenger Service Charges will rise to THB 700 at the new airport.

[Ricardo]

A couple of points :-

1) The new airport has 2 runways, just like the old one, although there is more space for building extra runways if they ever become necessary.

2) The domestic & international terminals at DM both need expansion, this could easily be accomodated on the far side of the sirport, where the military have a lot of under-used space. The chances of actually bringing this into profitable use are IMHO NIL here in Thailand.

3) In the domestic terminal, next time you're passing through, look at the model (near the entrance but after security for hand-luggage) of the new airport , and you will see that half the new aircraft-stands are beyond the buildings. So buses to remote areas , for passengers' comfort & convenience, will remain a feature of travelling via BKK. This may actually be to reduce costs, for the low-cost airlines, who will generally put their passengers to ANY inconvenience, rather than pay a fuller cost for a better servcie. T.I.T.

And the posts regarding corruption, being the only justification for building a new airport, ring very true.

[mrbojangles]

Airports of Thailand (AOT) have confirmed that Passenger Service Charges will rise to THB 700 at the new airport.

Absolute rip off, i've never understood this Service Charge. I have also travelled alot and I was racking my brain to think of anywhere else that does this and i couldn't remember any.

As for DM, i don't mind it really. Departure side is OK, Arrival side is a bit crappy but you're not there long really.

[ovenman]

2)  The domestic & international terminals at DM both need expansion, this could easily be accomodated on the far side of the sirport, where the military have a lot of under-used space.

I've always thought it made more sense to move the air force out of Don Muang to other environs. Their space could then be utilised for expanding/improving the existing commercial airport operation, but of course that would never happen.

[ovenman]

Airports of Thailand (AOT) have confirmed that Passenger Service Charges will rise to THB 700 at the new airport.

Absolute rip off, i've never understood this Service Charge. I have also travelled alot and I was racking my brain to think of anywhere else that does this and i couldn't remember any.

You pay this fee everywhere (departure tax), but it's usually included in the ticket price. If you can figure out the codes on a ticket receipt, you can figure out what the departure tax is.

As to why collecting the departure tax is done the way it is in Thailand rather than simply include the tax in the ticket cost, it's another long story involving corruption and somebody connected who owns the company that handles the fee collecting and punching the little tickets (no, I am not making that up).

[samran]

A couple of points :-

1)  The new airport has 2 runways, just like the old one, although there is more space for building extra runways if they ever become necessary.

2)  The domestic & international terminals at DM both need expansion, this could easily be accomodated on the far side of the sirport, where the military have a lot of under-used space.  The chances of actually bringing this into profitable use are IMHO NIL here in Thailand. 

3)  In the domestic terminal, next time you're passing through, look at the model (near the entrance but after security for hand-luggage) of the new airport , and you will see that half the new aircraft-stands are beyond the buildings.  So buses to remote areas , for passengers' comfort & convenience, will remain a feature of travelling via BKK.  This may actually be to reduce costs, for the low-cost airlines, who will generally put their passengers to ANY inconvenience, rather than pay a fuller cost for a better servcie.  T.I.T. 

And the posts regarding corruption, being the only justification for building a new airport, ring very true.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Great post.

Don Muang may be realatively inefficient, but a new airport didn't need to be built.

For probably a tenth of the cost, renovations of Don Muang could have been undertaken to improve passanger facilities and the pricing for airport charges (landing, parking fees etc) could have been revised to improve capacity of the airport. There are a lot of ways to get more people through an airport that don't involve building a new runway or facility which may remain relatively under utitilised for many years.

So the reason why they built a new airport is that the government felt that Thailand was being left out after both HK and KL build their spanking new airports and Changi was going from strength to strength. It never occured to them to add value to an exisiting asset. Add into that the need line various pockets with construction contracts, and the case in the governments eyes became overwheming.

[IMA_FARANG]

I don't know the design of the new airport or much about traffic problems around the old one, but aircraft handling and pax movement through the transit area of Don Muang are abominable.

I know it is one of the regions busiest airports, but the system of parking planes miles from the terminal and transporting pax jammed like sheep in hot, smelly, crappy buses several miles and dropping them at a door which can still be half a kilometre or more from Immigration control is pathetic.

Have you people who think the place is fine heard of the system of moving pax direct from the aircraft to transit via fingers? Bangkok is the only major airport I have ever used that has these buses and I have been through some of the busiest in the world. The transporting of pax from plane to carpark and vice versa is a design science. DM is a nightmare, hopefully the new place is ultra modern and equal to some of the best in Asia.

Don Muang is very broke and needs replacing.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Don Muang is no picnic....but how long have you been living in Thailand? The new Don Maung is so far ahead of the airport they had 20+ years ago that it seems like heaven now compared to the old terminal.

Edited August 29, 2005 by IMA_FARANG

[tuky]

Parking is a major issue at DM, as well as seating inside the terminal after passport control.

I look forward to some modernisation, some more room to move about once past passport control.

Most airports I travel through still have the bus systemn ot always but everynow and then I get caught.

The biggest plus for is it is only half as far to get home

[tuky]

I don't know the design of the new airport or much about traffic problems around the old one, but aircraft handling and pax movement through the transit area of Don Muang are abominable.

I know it is one of the regions busiest airports, but the system of parking planes miles from the terminal and transporting pax jammed like sheep in hot, smelly, crappy buses several miles and dropping them at a door which can still be half a kilometre or more from Immigration control is pathetic.

Have you people who think the place is fine heard of the system of moving pax direct from the aircraft to transit via fingers? Bangkok is the only major airport I have ever used that has these buses and I have been through some of the busiest in the world. The transporting of pax from plane to carpark and vice versa is a design science. DM is a nightmare, hopefully the new place is ultra modern and equal to some of the best in Asia.

Don Muang is very broke and needs replacing.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Don Muang is no picnic....but how long have you been living in Thailand? The new Don Maung is so far ahead of the airport they had 20+ years ago that it seems like heaven now compared to the old terminal.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

This statement could apply to how many % of airports across the globe?

[Rinrada]

Always liked coming through D.M.even in the days when there was no motorway into town and Gordon Wus Hopewell airport-link was a just a dream but time moves on.

Here in London we are banging on with Terminal 5 which is just an add on to the other 4 at Heathrow and will probabally end up costing twice as much as the whole new Suwanna.

The whole world is changing and in a couple of years ...not 2 long ..we will all be flying about in aircraft like the new A380 and BIGGER thus only the guys who stay ahead of the game will win.

For all the moans and groans we gotta give the them (T.Gov) and Mr T himself credit for pushing the whole circus...cracks and all.

Also it only abot 10 mins drive from my gaff in Sam Prac ...buts that got nothing to do wiff it

[thai3]

don meuang is worse than an upcountry

compared to many world airports, don muang is rather a dingy, outdated place.

still a lot nicer to use than a lot of places-heathrow for example that's horrendous.-peter

Edited August 29, 2005 by thai3

[marquess]

I am about ten minutes away from Don Muang, I just hope that they run the two of them in tandom for a while. Which would make sense, if they really think that they will be that busy. The whole new airport is a scam from day one. How much would it have cost to simply expand the sky train right up to and into the airport? Then again few things make sense here.

[SiamOne]

I think it was getting impossible to expand the DM airport any more. New runways, longer runways, new terminals etc. so a new location out of town was thought the better option. No more jets landing above housing complexes, noise pollution less.

They will continue using DM for cargo transport and some holiday (charter) flights though.

It will be nice to have a new and, hopefully, efficient, airport. Judging by KL, after the awful teething problems, the ride into town by rail is very nice, no traffic problems. Then can connect to other transport, like underground or skytrain.

be happy, stop whingeing

[SiamOne]

and, the service charge is quite cheap compared to other countries, just not hidden in the ticket price!!

In UK they even charge 20 pounds extra tax for going out of the country!! besides the airport tax (service charge)

[ilyushin]

Let me write on this topic later. Been working the Don Muang Zone for years.

I'll be back!

[lopburi3]

The new airport will start with two usable runways. Don Muang only has one as the military side is too close to use both at the same time. Don Muang was designed to build a new runway on the West side of airport road but that never happened and in recent years building was allowed to take place there so there was no option for expansion other than to build the new airport.

[Khutan]

don meuang is worse than an upcountry bus station.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You obviously havn't travellled in India, the airports there are shocking. All the baggage is generally heaped into one big pile and people go picking through the lot for their bags. Immigration is a very strange affair Only a few airports have airbridges, so you are all dumped onto the tarmac.

Or try alot of South American airports, sure the aircraft taxi's to near the gate (normally no Airbridge) and you can get mugged by people who have climbed through the perimeter fence going for your travel documents.

I don't think DM is so bad, but it depends on what you are accustomed to.