Don Muang Airport To Reclaim Eastern Runway

[webfact]

Don Mueang Airport to reclaim eastern runway

BANGKOK, Nov 22 – A plan to restore Don Mueang Airport, mainly used for domestic flights, will start at the eastern runway where floodwaters are receding and is expected to be functional again within one or two months, according to Somchai Sawasdeepon, senior executive vice president of Airports of Thailand (AoT).

The Don Mueang recovery plan is divided into two phases – the first to recover the eastern runway, connecting the premises of the Royal Thai Air Force headquarters and the second to restore the western runway, adjacent Bangkok's Don Mueang district.

An initial survey on the airport flood level found it has receded on the eastern side, the airport’s highest area.

Floodwater will be pumped out to the western side of the airport and then the runway surface will be rebuilt for a total distance of 3.7 kilometres with a 30cm layer of asphaltic concrete.

It is estimated that Bt480 million will be needed for restoration of the eastern runway, mostly used for military aircraft.

The low-lying western side of the airport, where floodwater is about 40-50cm deep, will not be restored until floodwaters in the Don Mueang area recedes, in order to avoid a negative impact on nearby residents. It is estimated that about Bt1 billion will be needed to rebuild the western runway, completely destroyed, as well as the terminal building, baggage-handling system, information system, electricity and water supply system as well as a cargo building.

“It will take about two to three months to restore the entire airport with an overall budget of about Bt1.5 billion”, he added.

Mr Somchai said that a working committee is discussing restoration details, and construction of an additional flood prevention system at Don Mueang.

He suggested that the airport’s facilities should be improved to accommodate international flight services as Suvarnabhumi Airport is now encountering congestion thanks to the steady growth of airline passenger volume, and it recently surpassed its designed capacity. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-11-22

[sparebox2]

Singapore pump sand to reclaim land for runway.

Thailand pump water to reclaim runway for plane.s.

[colinscarr]

Given the small amount of traffic Don Muang handled before the floods, why do they want to refurbish the western runway? It is surplus to requirements and definitely not worth spending a billion baht to put it back into service.

Think of Thailand's major regional airports. Chiang Mai has one runway, Phuket has one runway. Ditto, Ubon, Udon, Hat Yai, Krabi etc etc

Don Muang does not need two runways.

[tombkk]

Given the small amount of traffic Don Muang handled before the floods, why do they want to refurbish the western runway? It is surplus to requirements and definitely not worth spending a billion baht to put it back into service.

Think of Thailand's major regional airports. Chiang Mai has one runway, Phuket has one runway. Ditto, Ubon, Udon, Hat Yai, Krabi etc etc

Don Muang does not need two runways.

Please provide comparisons by number of flights departing/arriving per day. For Don Muaeng, you would have to include the military and other non-regular flights.

Are you still sure DMK does not need two runways?

[Ricardo]

The money would be better spent on making a start on a 3rd-runway at Swampy, or on the often-promised/never-delivered LCC-terminal there, to boost its overall capacity to cope with future demand-growth.

The largely-military (nowadays) airport at Don Meung can surely at least wait for the waters to be pumped away, and a proper survey of any damage made, before they start putting forward plans for major spending on it.

But brown-envelopes carry their own internal-logic, don't they ?

Edited November 22, 2011 by Ricardo

[surangw]

Will they check for potential sink holes?

[colinscarr]

Given the small amount of traffic Don Muang handled before the floods, why do they want to refurbish the western runway? It is surplus to requirements and definitely not worth spending a billion baht to put it back into service.

Think of Thailand's major regional airports. Chiang Mai has one runway, Phuket has one runway. Ditto, Ubon, Udon, Hat Yai, Krabi etc etc

Don Muang does not need two runways.

Please provide comparisons by number of flights departing/arriving per day. For Don Muaeng, you would have to include the military and other non-regular flights.

Are you still sure DMK does not need two runways?

Checking the Nokair timetable, which has a few gaps in it, I find 26 flight departures per day. Guessing about the gaps, I estimate another 6 departures per day, to make 32.

1 2 Go list 14 departures per day

Add the two together to get 46

Multiply by two to include arrivals to get 92

Round up and we get 100 scheduled airline movements per day

Add a few non scheds, say 20 per day

sub total 120 civil movements per day

Assume, conservatively, a single runway capacity of 35 movements per HOUR

Assume only 14 hours per day of runway use, maximum movements per day = 35 x 14 = 490 movements per day

So in that 14 hour day, that leaves 490-120 = 370 movements per day for the RTAF

So Don Muang does not need two runways, even if my estimate of civil traffic is wildly wrong.

NOTE a Movement is either a landing or a takeoff.

Edited for punctuation

Edited November 23, 2011 by colinscarr

[lannarebirth]

Singapore pump sand to reclaim land for runway.

Thailand pump water to reclaim runway for plane.s.

Good one.

[tourismloving]

Transportation

Suvarnabhumi Airport:

Suvarnabhumi Airport, the main international gateway to Thailand, remains open and will not be affected by the flood. Suvarnabhumi Airport is the main connector for international arrivals to domestic flights serving tourist destinations throughout Thailand such as Phuket, Chiang Mai and Surat Thani. Domestic flights are operating as per normal between Suvarnabhumi Airport and other airports in Thailand.

Transportation to and from the airport into central Bangkok including taxis, buses and the Airport Rail Link are operating normally. Highways from the airport to tourist destinations southeast of Bangkok such as Pattaya, Rayong and Ko Chang are open.

The two domestic airlines normally based at Don Mueang Airport, which is still closed due to flooding, continue operating from Suvarnabhumi Airport.

State Railway of Thailand and inter-provincial bus services:

State Railway of Thailand (SRT) and inter-provincial bus services are operating as per usual in areas that are not affected by the floods. In Bangkok and other areas affected by the floods, the SRT and inter-provincial bus service operators have adjusted their routes to best serve passengers given local conditions. Inter-provincial buses from Bangkok to southern provinces are leaving from the Southern Bus Terminal, also known as Sai Tai Mai.

Train services to north and northeastern Thailand are operating as per normal from Hua Lamphong Station, with some delays due to rerouting. Train services to the southern provinces are operating from Hua Lamphong Station and Nakhon Pathom due to flooding in some areas of Bangkok’s western suburbs. The SRT is providing shuttle bus services between Hua Lamphong Station and Nakhon Pathom. Travelers are advised to check in advance with these operators and may want to consider flying to their destinations within Thailand.