Phuket relaxes ban on private jets

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Phuket relaxes ban on private jets


Phuket International Airport has issued a new set of restrictions on private jets

PHUKET: -- Private jets continue to face restrictions at Phuket airport, albeit to a lesser degree than during the recent holiday season.

Authorities have now reverted to limitations imposed before the Christmas-New Year period (Dec 26-Jan 5), when most private jets were barred from landing, taking off or parking at Thailand's third-busiest airport.

The new set of restrictions reflects the low-priority status of private jets as officials struggle to make room for commercial airlines amid a severe capacity shortage.

At a meeting last Wednesday, authorities from Phuket airport, the Civil Aviation Department and the so-called flight slot coordinators endorsed a four-point set of guidelines:

• All requests for private jet flights through Phuket must be submitted and approved through the coordinators.

• Daily permissible private jet flights are limited to five in number.

• Permission for overnight parking at the airport will be granted only to aircraft with a tail height of not longer than 4.02 metres.

• Requests for flight approval must be submitted at least three working days in advance.

While private jet operators and their high-net-worth travellers are generally unhappy with the restrictions, they admit the rules are clearer than in the past.

“What we see now is the flight slot coordinators as the party for us to directly deal with,” said an executive of a private jet operator who asked not to be named.

He said permission for overnight parking at the airport is of little use, as the specified tail heights apply to relatively small jets that are seldom used by elite travellers.

“They are talking about light jets the size of a Cessna Citation CJ3, which can seat six passengers for a maximum four-hour flight,” he said. “Most elite travellers tend to use bigger aircraft such as the Gulfstream G200, which can carry nine passengers for a flight of up to five and a half hours.”

The upshot is that larger aircraft will need to find another airport to park at after dropping off passengers — and remain there until pickup time. Known as “repositioning”, it is a costly exercise that complicates flight arrangements.

The only option for repositioning private jets is the navy-operated U-tapao airport in Rayong, some 800 km away, as nearer airports like Krabi cannot accommodate them. The hassle could discourage well-heeled travellers from visiting Phuket.

Authorities have cited congestion and the ongoing expansion work at Phuket airport as reasons for restricting private jets. Relief should come by year-end with completion of the 5.7-billion-baht expansion, which will nearly double the current annual passenger capacity of 6.5 million.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-relaxes-ban-on-private-jets-50498.php


-- Phuket News 2015-01-12

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Phuket relaxes ban on private jets

Phew. Thank Christ for that

[BudRight]

I don't always fly in a G200, but when I do, I stay away from Phuket.

[ggt]

• All requests for private jet flights through Phuket must be submitted and approved through the coordinators.

Love to have one of those "coordinators" jobs...the perks must be very rewarding...

[ikbenhet]

Shit, just cancelled my order for the plane and ordered a powerboat.

What to do next? Maybe I just use my submarine for now.

Edited January 12, 2015 by ikbenhet

[Don Aleman]

Whew ! It has been hell maneuvering my plane thru the Drive thru to park

in the rear of McDonalds !

[Ulic]

Just give me the phone number of the guy that I can pay to get priority as one of 5 per day. LOL