With worsening air travel conditions out of Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport, Thailand’s Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra tries to find solutions. Better blame the method of governance in Thailand which created the current mess…
BANGKOK- The question from the website of the Bangkok Post is rather sarcastic: “Thailand’s Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is also involved into airport’s congestion?” questioned a reader. Yes, it seems odd that a country’s Prime Minister must also watch out the capital’s airport development and give an order to find rapidly solutions to relieve the airport from congestion.
This ‘innocent’ question from the reader is of course a way to highlight the inefficiency of successive Thai governments to implement already well-known solutions. The Prime Minister is indeed the supreme authority at the government in charge of anything, airport’s congestion included. But with a relatively rapid turn-over of political personnel and contradictory interests of Thai parties, the roadway to solve problems looks most of the time like a dead end.
Thailand PM seems genuinely concerned that expansion work at the six-year old Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport might be a source of problems. The resurfacing of the Eastern Runway –due for completion on August 2nd- has already fully disorganized traffic with increasing delays reaching up to 45 minutes.
Last Sunday, Yingluck Shinawatra discussed congestion problems at Suvarnabhumi with officials yesterday. The Prime Minister has formed a working group to solve congestion problems at Suvarnabhumi but also Phuket airport. Solutions must be proposed within the next two weeks. Airports of Thailand Plc (AOT) chairman ACM Sumet Phomanee heads the group and members include representatives of Thai Airways International, Aeronautical Radio of Thailand Co and the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board.
It is likely that already recommended solutions will be once more advocated: the airport should take more flights at night to relieve some of the peak waves during the day when congestion is at its highest. The reactivation of Don Muang airport should also be accelerated.
But Thailand’s government is unlikely to look at the real reasons of Bangkok Suvarnabhumi inability to manage the growth of its traffic, just six years after being inaugurated. Neither AOT, nor the Government will recognize the fact that it has to do with the method of governance in Thailand. In contrary to many other countries in the region such as Malaysia, Vietnam or even Indonesia, Thailand’s government remains weak and plagued by political instability. Blame the high turnover of Prime Ministers and their team –in a decade, seven Prime Ministers served the country-, blame also collusion between political parties and business; and finally blame the absence of State’s commitment to fulfill its duties once a decision is taken.
Expansion at Suvarnabhumi Airport is on the map since 2008 and the decision has only been taken this year for the final draft to expansion! Governments have played since 2006 with the fate of Don Muang International Airport, Bangkok old air gateway. First it was closed then reopened then due to be turned into an Exhibition Centre, than into an air maintenance facility to finally being reused as a domestic airport and now into an international airport. From day one, experts knew that leaving some airlines –especially low cost carriers at Don Muang airport- was the best solution. In Phuket, talks about a new air terminal started a decade ago!
In between, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra ordered officials to speed up the THB 62-billion second phase of the expansion of the airport’s passenger terminal and the THB 13-billion project for a third runway to increase current capacity from 45 million to over 60 million passengers. Until the next Prime Minister starts to undo what the previous did…
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.
