Things are getting crowded again as DMK rides the budget boom

[webfact]

Things are getting crowded again as DMK rides the budget boom
By Coconuts Bangkok



BANGKOK: -- Just a couple years after being pulled from retirement, Don Mueang Airport is booming, serving nearly 16.5 million passengers last year.

While its younger sibling BKK undergoes expansion to deal with its growing pains, DMK will likely exceed its capacity this year due to the ever-growing field of low-cost carriers choosing its runways to nest their planes.

And more are coming, Travel Daily News reports. Tigerair Taiwan and Golden Myanmar will begin flying out of the airport in September, making for 10 airlines based at the airport. [read more...]

Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co//2014/08/05/things-are-getting-crowded-again-dmk-rides-budget-boom


-- Coconuts Bangkok 2014-08-06

[terryp]

some stupid mistakes were made by PTP ...Not utilising DM from the very start of Swampy was one of their biggest

[Suriya4]

I must blame Thaksin for building swampy when DMK is a perfectly usable airport, and near my home.

[Eric Loh]

some stupid mistakes were made by PTP ...Not utilising DM from the very start of Swampy was one of their biggest

Sure is a stupid mistake. DMK was closed in 2006. Check that year and who is in charge.

[jpeg]

It took me thirty minutes to queue for a taxi to downtown bkk. THIRTY minutes! What with that and the full one and a half hour ride on the expressway, making it 20 minutes slower than the actual flight I won't be returning to bkk anytime soon.

Edited August 6, 2014 by jpeg

[lee b]

DMK was far better than the swamp and in my view always will be ! Its also alot easier to get back to my bkk home from there than it is from the swamp.

[Rinrada]

Last time I went through DM a couple of months ago I got the bus to (from memory) Motchit MRT in about 10 minutes and from there down to Asoke on said "tube"in again 10-15 minutes ...quite impressed.

Talking to the driver about the Airport link and he just about remembered it....stopped what 7-8 years ago...time flys..eh

[JoeThePoster]

What would've happened during those floods if DMK were the only airport?

[Lakegeneve]

some stupid mistakes were made by PTP ...Not utilising DM from the very start of Swampy was one of their biggest

Sure is a stupid mistake. DMK was closed in 2006. Check that year and who is in charge.

DMK did not close when Swampy opened in Sept 2006.

DMK continued to operate with daily scheduled flights since that time.

(Excluding the 6 week flood period in Oct & Nov 2011 when all flight operations were suspended & the brief 1 week PAD occupation shutdown of late Nov/early Dec 2008)

[marstons]

What would've happened during those floods if DMK were the only airport?

They would have protected it better and diverted the water else where, since it was of no importance why bother.

[marstons]

Usual Thai efficiency there are plenty of empty parking bays for aircraft and it is no where near what it could be. They cant even be bothered to take down the old Terminal 1 Terminal 2 and domestic signs around the airport. As is the norm its will become chaotic in no time. meanwhile neighbouring countries build low cost airports and they run efficiently.

One of Swampy's biggest problems is runway closures for repairs up to 200+ per year, reducing capacity.

Cant blame Thaskin for swamppy the land was bought in the early 70's and he did finally get it built, apparently with a lot of contacts going to friends etc.

Just for info if you drive and do finally manage to find an open car park be aware its not a pay on exit its a pay inside the airport so dont go with your ticket to pay on exit. Again still many car park signs but most closed.

Edited August 7, 2014 by marstons

[Farma]

It took me thirty minutes to queue for a taxi to downtown bkk. THIRTY minutes! What with that and the full one and a half hour ride on the expressway, making it 20 minutes slower than the actual flight I won't be returning to bkk anytime soon.

Edited August 18, 2014 by Farma

[Farma]

Yesterday the taxi queue was out past the escalators.

I have to give credit to the security guy on the scooter. He was telling everyone they could also catch a taxi upstairs at the departure level.

The whistle blowers upstairs had no problems with people catching taxis that had just dropped off passengers

[Munsterman]

Yesterday the taxi queue was out past the escalators.

I have to give credit to the security guy on the scooter. He was telling everyone they could also catch a taxi upstairs at the departure level.

The whistle blowers upstairs had no problems with people catching taxis that had just dropped off passengers

This is what makes Thailand such a wonderful place. Adapting to the circumstances - mostly. Not so many of the Napoleon-complex petty officialdom types one finds elsewhere in the world.

[mca]

Flew into DM last Saturday afternoon and it was heaving. Massive queues for the taxis. Stood there ten minutes with the queue not moving so went to the transportation desk and got a Camry for 700 baht to Asoke.

[lomatopo]

Does anyone know if they have repaired the second runway (not sure; 21L/3R?) at DMK, on the far side of the golf course? {One of these runways was unusable owing to subsidence, and having a single runway does limit total arrivals/departures, and with smaller planes, the total number of pax., per hour}. And if so, are they using both runways? I know they are too close for simultaneous use, but they can stagger take-offs and landings, same direction, but then traffic does need to cross an active runway.

Other than charters/military/gov't/maint flights I think DMK was closed from Sep. 2006 until March 2007. I think the RTAF technically benefits from increased operations at DMK, even though developing the land ultimately would prove much more profitable. I assume they need/want a "presence" close to the capital, and having a back-up (rather than UTP) is advantageous.

Edited October 24, 2014 by lomatopo

[Ace of Pop]

Not too bad, 300 over a Taxi...i go to arrivals and jump in a freshly vacated one, wouldn't try it with Kids or lots of luggage though.

[canopus1969]

Not too bad, 300 over a Taxi...i go to arrivals and jump in a freshly vacated one, wouldn't try it with Kids or lots of luggage though.

Errrrr do you not mean departures ?

[ravip]

An airport is evaluated by it's close proximity to one's home?

Must be the alcohol...

[Ace of Pop]

Not too bad, 300 over a Taxi...i go to arrivals and jump in a freshly vacated one, wouldn't try it with Kids or lots of luggage though.

Errrrr do you not mean departures ?

Depends, the Folks who got out the Taxi were arriving, i was departing.

[NanLaew]

An airport is evaluated by it's close proximity to one's home?

Must be the alcohol...

Yup!

And all the p!sshead, sexpat, Pattaya mongers and 2-week millionaires absolutely HATE Don Meuang.

[Mencken]

Here is a bit of insanity...

No water fountains anywhere.

Did find a free cooler down toward the big# gates.

[Mencken]

More insanity, low end booze just went from b550 to b650/60 now making it cheaper to buy off the shelf in US and Japan. The difference in Thailand is almost not worth the effort but since alcohol is criminally taxed, it is - barely.

Up b100 (20%).

So done with it here...

[tlock]

Just to reiterate the taxi situation is out of control. There were about 200 people in line when we arrived and the line didn't appear to be moving, so had to suck it up and take one of the taxi touts milling around freestyle and overpay to get to Pattaya.