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First a purely domestic airport, then low cost airlines’ airport and tomorrow full-fledged international airport again? As delays to the expansion of Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok continue, Airports of Thailand would like to see Don Mueang resumes its previous role as an international gateway…
BANGKOK- Many would have thought that runways and terminals invaded by waters at Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok during the century flooding of October 2011 could have cast a spell over the future of the old airport of the Thai capital. Last year, the airline welcomed 5.19 million passengers, after 4.23 million passengers in 2011, a result up by 22.7%.
The performance could have been ever better as 2012 results were influenced by the closure of the airport during the first quarter due to flood’s damage. During the last quarter of 2012, passengers traffic rocketed by 773% as the AirAsia Group moved back its entire Bangkok operation at Don Mueang. The airport’s authority AOT now expects traffic to surge to 12 million this year while it could already reach 15 million by next year. Authorities work now at the reactivation of the Terminal 2, which then will take the airport’s total capacity to 27.5 million passengers a year. Works on the terminal should be completed by 2016…
While Suvarnabhumi International airport expansion is encountering delays for the construction of a second satellite –which is due to rise capacity by an additional 15 million passengers-, Airports of Thailand Plc board asked now the cabinet of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to lift Don Mueang restrictions of serving only point-to-point traffic into a fully functional airport. AOT Chairman of the Board Sita Divari recently explained that the board had approved a proposal to upgrade Don Mueang airport to serve all airlines, not only budget ones. “Even with the second phase of the Suvarnabhumi airport completed, its full capacity will be 60 million passengers a year. We need to maximise the use of Don Mueang,” he told media.
So far, AOT has failed to attract additional airlines to Don Mueang, since AirAsia moved back its operation to the old city airport back to October 2012. Don Mueang is served on a regular basis by AirAsia, Nok Air, Orient Aviation and Solar Air. Charter flights are also accommodated out of the old airport. However, budget carriers such as Tiger Air, Cebu Air, Jeju Air, Jin Air or Jetstar continues to favour Suvarnabhumi Airport. Their transfer could possibly help to take away another million passengers out of crowded Suvarnabhumi airport.
But AOT has more ambitions than just attracting LCCs. AOT Chairman indicated ten days ago that even Oneworld, one of the world’s global airline alliances, had expressed an interest in relocating services to Don Mueang. To even highlight that Don Mueang should even be retrofitted to eventually accommodate the Airbus A380. Such a plan would then cost THB 10 billion (US$ 3.1 billion in additional investment, estimated the AOT chairman.
In Bangkok, the alliance includes British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas and Royal Jordanian. However, asked by the Bangkok Post about a Oneworld’s possible interest into moving some days into Don Mueang, Oneworld VP Communication Michael Blunt categorically denied that the alliance had made any request of that type…
Was then the announcement of AOT Chairman Sita Divari only a way to force the Cabinet’s hand to deliver more funds to AOT board, an institution mostly ruled by military? Nothing is really certain and it will certainly be difficult to learn more about AOT Chairman’s agenda.
But it is true that many large cities in Asia-Pacific (Kuala Lumpur, Melbourne, Osaka, Seoul, Taipei or Tokyo to just name a few) have already two fully functioning airports which provide alternatives to travellers, especially in wide-spreading metropolis. Bangkok Don Mueang could easily also welcome a few more scheduled flights from legacy carriers to Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Singapore or Seoul without jeopardizing Suvarnabhumi’s role as the Kingdom’s premier air gateway and hub.
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.
