The transfer of all AirAsia flights to Bangkok Don Mueang airport on October 1st, gave a new breed of life to the old facility north of the city. However, further renovation of the facilities and the improvement of public transport will be essential to attract further airlines…
BANGKOK- Repeated veteran travellers will feel familiar with the place. Terminal 1 at Don Mueang International Airport is again bustling with passengers. Just like it was prior to 2006, when the airport was still the only international air gateway to Bangkok. In fact, getting inside of the airport is almost like going back to the past. Little has changed despite the fact that the terminal has been closed for already six years. Despite a budget of THB 1.6 billion to renovate the premises – the sum however includes the repairs consequent to 2011 flooding-, changes are mostly cosmetic: the pavement outside the departure hall as well as lighting were renovated, new carpets put in place and a couple of new shops added compared to the 2006 version of Don Mueang.
The most spectacular change- an element of pride for the local airport’s authority AOT– is indeed the up-to-date toilets facilities, which are the only futuristic elements of the airport’s “renovation”. “They are further plans to further renovate the airport, with the reopening of the Terminal 2 and in a more distant future of the former Domestic Terminal”, explains Paranee Vatanotai, Don Mueang Airport General Manager.
However, with an initial capacity for 16.5 million passengers, Don Mueang Terminal 1 will be able to accommodate any future traffic from its current users, the AirAsia Group, Nok Air and Orient Thai. “We expect a traffic of 14 million passengers for our first full-calendar year”, estimates Don Mueang General Manager. Once Terminal 2 renovation achieved, Don Mueang will be able to accommodate again over 25 million passengers.
Don Mueang reopening is due to the increasing congestion of Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport which opened six years ago with a capacity for only 42 million passengers. The task of the Airports Authority of Thailand is now to lure more airlines to switch to Don Mueang. So far, it has been a failure. “We are in serious discussions with two to three other carriers but we cannot reveal names”, insists Mrs. Vatanotai…
The reopening of Don Mueang is likely to please above all the AirAsia Group. “We are happy to be back to Don Mueang as the airport offers to our passengers very good comfort conditions. They are little waiting time at immigration and security lanes compared to Suvarnabhumi, especially as we are the sole international carrier here”, says Thai AirAsia CEO Tassapon Bijleveld. The airline should approximately generate 13 million passengers on a full year basis.
AirAsia has in fact plans to not only grow its network out of Don Mueang but also improve ground facilities. “We are planning to have a paid lounge that could be open by December. We will also offer through check-in facilities for passengers having connections in Bangkok”, adds Mr. Bijleveld. In the departure all, the total number of check-in desks has now grown to 44 counters, 20 more than at Suvarnabhumi…
AirAsia Group’s network will continue to expand with 5 to 6 aircraft being added to Thai AirAsia fleet every year. By 2016, the carrier will then have 48 aircraft compared to 27 today. “Our expansion focus will mainly be to Indochina and Southern China. We just boosted frequencies to Ho Chi Minh City and Yangon with a third daily frequency. We also opened new flights to Mandalay, Wuhan, Xian and Chongqing and are now looking to fly to Danang from next year”, highlights Thai AirAsia CEO. With a few more flights to Indonesia from Indonesia AirAsia and probably the arrival of AirAsia Philippines, the group is likely to dominate for long passengers movements at Don Mueang. Even if other low cost carriers such as Tiger Airways or Cebu Pacificare likely to move in the near future…
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
