PM checks Don Mueang Airport

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra paid a visit to Don Mueang International Airport last Friday and reconfirmed plans to use the airport as a second gateway as she toured the facility to check restoration progress. Back in June, the Yingluck’s administration made it clear Bangkok would have two international gateways in a break with the previous government’s policy. Don Mueang Airport is now being used for both domestic and international flights served by low-cost carrier,  or point-to-point carriers (not relying on connecting traffic) to help relieve an already congested Suvarnabhumi Airport. Don Mueang started full operations 1 October using Terminal 1 that has an annual capacity of 16.5 million passengers. Currently, there are seven airlines based there: Nok Air, Orient Thai Airlines, Solar Air, Thai Regional Airlines, Thai AirAsia, AirAsia and Indonesia AirAsia. Airports of Thailand said it will speed up the construction of the third runway at Suvarnabhumi Airport and refurbish Don Muaeng’s Terminal 2. Transport Minister, Jarupong Ruangsuwan, said that the renovation and upgrading of Terminal 2 with 35 contact gates will lift capacity to 22.5 million passengers a year by next year. From 2018 to 2022, it will renovate the domestic terminal and concourses 5 and 6 with 47 contact gates that will lift capacity futher to 27.5 million passengers a year. On flood protection, he said a barrier was being built around the airport and the monkey cheek area (catchment) to the north of the airport would prevent water flowing into the airport. The 3-metre wide dike and wall totalling 13.8 km in length will be ready next month. AoT is speeding up work on a 7.3 km section of the wall along Vibhavadi Rangsit road. Thai AirAsia CEO, Tassapon Bijleveld said since the airline and its AirAsia sisters moved to Don Mueang, there had been a  few glitches and he expected they would be smoothed out by the end of the month. “Actually by moving here, we can operate more efficiently and our on-time performance is much better due to lighter traffic and the shorter distances between check-in counters to the concourse. Immigration queue are also considerably shorter,” he said.