Suvarnabhumi Airport News & Events

[halfway inn]

New measures for Suvarnabhumi Airport to accommodate high passenger flow


A file photo shows how busy Suvarnabhumi Airport could be during a high season.

Suvarnabhumi Airport is expected to accommodate 27.47 million passengers during the upcoming high season, according to Airports of Thailand's estimates.

This is a 5.50 per cent growth last year's high season.

The number accounts for 57.6 per cent of the 47.7 million passengers using the six international airports operated by AOT during the six-month period starting from October.

The number of passengers will increase by 8.7 per cent from the same period last year.

The figures were revealed after a meeting between Transport Minister Chadchart Sittipunt and AOT executives.

They were brainstorming on measures to enhance the airports' efficiency, in light of the increasing volume of traffic.

Among the planned improvements is an increase in check-in counters at Suvarnabhumi Airport, including computerised check-in booths.

Airlines will also be encouraged to use check-in counters at Makkasan Rail Station.

The Nation

[halfway inn]

More convenience, safety for tourists at Suvarnabhumi Airport



BANGKOK, Sept 2 – Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi Airport has set up a special centre to facilitate passengers during the peak tourist season in October to March, according to airport director Rawewan Netrakavesna.

She said the centre, located on the fourth floor of the passenger terminal, was launched yesterday and would be operated round the clock until March 31 next year.

 The numbers of security officials and protective measures would also be boosted to provide safety to passengers.

 Airports of Thailand (AoT) estimated 27.5 million passengers arriving and departing Suvarnabhumi airport per year, on average 152,000 people daily – an increase by 5.5 per cent year-on-year.

The highest number of passengers are from China, Japan and Russia.

 The airport provides service to an average 806 flights a day, a 2.6 per cent increase year-on-year, she said.

mcot

[halfway inn]

SUVARNABHUMI

Courtroom for aggrieved foreigners opens on Monday

Suvarnabhumi airport's courtroom for foreign plaintiffs will open on Monday.


An average of 250 crimes a day are reported at the busy Suvarnabhumi airport, and authorities believe a new fast-track court will be able to clear many cases so that passengers can get on with their lives.

The Airports of Thailand Plc (AOT) approved the establishment of the court Tuesday.

The court will be a branch of the Samut Prakan provincial court and will handle cases of crimes against foreigners at the airport.

It will be the first court of its kind in the country.

AOT chairman Sita Divari said his authority had donated the space for the court and also provided it with office equipment and a video conference system to connect to Samut Prakan provincial court, where judges can consider cases remotely.

The airport court should improve the tourism image of the country, reduce crimes at the airport and facilitate justice, Sqd Ldr Sita said.

He added that the court will be flexible if aggrieved foreigners wanted to leave the country early and would schedule their cases appropriately.

Sqd Ldr Sita also plans to establish similar courts at Don Mueang and Phuket airports.

Acting AOT president Pongsak Semsan said that from January to August this year, 1,980 crimes were reported at Suvarnabhumi airport, involving 1,047 suspects. Most of these were petty crimes.

Suvarnabhumi director Raweewan Netarakavesana said the courtroom, which measures 46 sq m, replaces a reception room on the third floor of the passenger terminal.

It will later be moved to a permanent location on the sixth floor of the airport's car park building, where it will have more space, Ms Raweewan said.

18-09-2013
Bangkok Post

[Oytopikos]

Thai airports to raise passenger service charge

BANGKOK: -- Passengers at six international airports will have to shoulder a higher airport tax, as the airport operator is raising the rate to reflect the actual operating cost.

Sita Divari, chairman of Airports of Thailand which operates the six airports including Suvarnabhumi Airport, said the AOT’s board of directors Thursday approved the increase.

The passenger service charge (PSC) for domestic travellers will be doubled from Bt100 to Bt200. Meanwhile, international travellers’ PSC will be raised from Bt700 to Bt800.

The PSC was last adjusted in 2011.


The Nation

[halfway inn]

Suvarnabhumi Airport's announcement

Suvarnabhumi Airport warns over heavy traffic caused by anti-government rallies



BANGKOK, 20 February 2014, (NNT) -- Due to various rallies around Bangkok and its vicinity, all passengers travelling to Suvarnabhumi Airport have been advised to carefully check their routes or find alternative means of transport in order to avoid missing flights.

Passengers should also leave for the airport at least 3-4 hours prior to their scheduled flights.

Suvarnabhumi Airport's announcement came amid heavy traffic congestion around the capital resulting from road closures by various anti-government rallies.

In order to avoid missing flights, passengers should plan their traveling routes carefully and leave for the airport at least 3-4 hours ahead of scheduled flights.

Alternative route such as the airport rail link has also been suggested for passengers so as to avoid being caught in traffic.

For more information, please call Airports of Thailand (AOT) at 1722 round the clock.

[halfway inn]

Farmers to target Suvarnabhumi



About 10,000 to arrive in capital today in bid to push govt to resign; leader rules out siege of airport

BANGKOK: -- Tens of thousands of farmers, travelling on more than 1,000 farm tractors in a long convoy from the upper northern and central provinces, will today arrive in Bangkok and move to Suvarnabhumi Airport in a concerted attempt to pressure the caretaker government to resign.

They believe the government's exit would remove the legal hurdle impeding funding for the rice-subsidy project.

Meanwhile, another group of farmers plans to file a petition with the Office of the Ombudsman, demanding a probe into the government's rice-pledging scheme, as corruption is suspected to be the reason for the inability to pay the farmers.

Former Chart Thai Pattana Party MP Chada Thaiset, who represents Uthai Thani farmers, led some 15,000 farmers from Uthai Thani, Ayutthaya, Singburi and Ang Thong to Bangkok.

"I decided to lead the convoy because I feel sorry for the farmers and I am fed up with the government's lies about the payment, which never came," said Chada, whose party is a coalition partner of the Pheu Thai-led caretaker government.

Some farmers would be heading to Suvarnabhumi Airport, for a purpose he did not specify. But, they insisted that they would not obstruct air traffic or raid the airport. They only wanted to make a symbolic demonstration. After that, this group of farmers will move to other places.

Rawee Rungrueng, leader of the Thai Rice Farmers Network, said farmers will try many methods to pressure caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and her Cabinet to resign soon as that would be the fastest solution to secure payments.

"The farmers want the Office of the Ombudsman to help inspect rice warehouses to check whether there is rice in stockpiles, as well as investigate corruption," said Rawee.

He said they would stay overnight at Rangsit and enter Bangkok today.

Meanwhile, the Central Administrative Court yesterday accepted for judicial review a petition filed by a farmer against the Commerce Ministry.

Lamyai Srithong had petitioned the court on January 30, seeking damages from the ministry for its failure to pay for the rice she had sold under the price-pledging scheme. She had obtained a receipt for the pledged rice but later the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) refused to cash her receipt.

The petition names the Finance Ministry, the Budget Bureau, the National Economic and Social Development Board and the BAAC as co-defendants.

The court gave the defendants 30 days to submit their statements and their lists of witnesses and documents.

A leader of Lop Buri-based farmers, Ubolsak Bualuangngarm, said the farmers would blockade the capital for seven days if the government failed to pay them. He, however, said they would not cooperate with the anti-government People's Democratic Reform Committee in its drive to oust the government. He also asked capital residents to stockpile food supplies for seven days.

"If the government wants to disperse farmers' protests or arrest us, we are all ready to die, and donate our bodies," he said.

He added that the farmers travelling with this convoy would be joined by those travelling from the Northeast and the West, who are expected to reach Bangkok today.

Farmers based in Uthai Thani, who had said that they would camp out at the Commerce Ministry north of Bangkok, vowed yesterday not to return home if they did not get paid. The others travelling in the convoy, which was also using outbound Asia Route lanes against the regular traffic, are from Chai Nat, Sing Buri and Lop Buri. Although the caretaker government has attempted to find money, without full authority it cannot raise Bt130 billion still owed to several million farmers. "If the caretaker government decides to quit, I can assure the farmers should get their money in a short time," he added.

So far, only about 1-2 per cent of farmers in many provinces have been paid after Yingluck had promised to pay them off from Monday.

Farmers fear that if the current government continued to manage the pledging project, they would have to wait for several more months or even a year to receive their money.

"Hence, we will continue to pressure the crippled caretaker government to resign," emphasised Rawee.

Chada said the convoy would leave Bangkok for the farmers' homes once they were all paid.

Chart Thai Pattana Party adviser Somsak Prissanananthakul said Chada's role as a leader of the farmers would not affect his party's relationship with the ruling Pheu Thai Party.

Meanwhile, a group of pro-government people led by former transport minister Prasert Chantra-ruangthong yesterday deposited their money - a total of Bt30 million - in the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) in Nakhon Ratchasima amid continuing withdrawal of deposits from the Government Savings Bank (GSB).

GSB customers withdrew from the bank, as they disagreed with the bank's granting of a loan to BAAC to fund the rice-pledging scheme. GSB lost net deposits totalling Bt60 billion in three days, from February 17-19.



the nation(21-02-2014)

[halfway inn]

Farmers cancel airport protest plan

BANGKOK, 21 February 2014 (NNT) – Farmers who have yet to receive their money from the government have called off its protest plan at Suvarnabhumi International Airport.

Speaking for farmers gathering in Ayutthaya province, former Chartthaipattana Party member Chada Thaiseth said the farmers angered by the government’s financially plagued rice support program would no longer march to Suvarnabhumi Airport, after they had been assured by the government that they would be paid for their pledged rice.

According to Mr. Chada, the farmers merely wanted to make a symbolic gesture, with no intentions to cause disturbances to air traffic.

[Oytopikos]

BANGKOK, March 5 - The Airports of Thailand (AoT) has joined with True Corporation to provide free WiFi at six AoT international airports nationwide.

AoT president Sitha Tiwari said the six international airports operated by AoT--including Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Chiang Mai, Mae Fa Luang Chiang Rai, Phuket and Hat Yai--welcomed some 86 million passengers last year. Thus, the "AoT Free WiFi by TrueMove H" project, following caretaker Transport Minister Chadchart Sittipunt's policy, will allow AoT to better facilitate passengers and increase their satisfaction with airport service that is catching up with the standards of leading international airports.

Passengers can now use the free WiFi by selecting the "AoT Free WiFi by TrueMove H" on their device and then register for username and password with their ID or passport numbers. The free WiFi can be used up to two hours a day. Passengers can dial AoT Hotline 1331 around the clock for more information. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2014-03-05

[halfway inn]

TAXI SERVICE

Automatic kiosks set to improve taxi service at Suvarnabhumi Airport



BANGKOK: Automatic queue-card kiosks will soon improve people's access to taxi services at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

"They should reduce waiting time for taxis," Colonel Boonchu Klinsakhon said at a press conference.

Working in response to the National Council for Peace and Order's policy, Boonchu - who heads the 2nd Field Artillery Regiment Queen's Guard - said yesterday efforts to regulate taxi services at Bangkok's key aviation facility had been progressing.

The airport's general manager Rawewan Netarakavesana said eight kiosks would be installed by the end of next month.

"We will install kiosks at Gates 4 and 7 on the first floor of the terminal," she said.

She added that the airport had also sought to improve taxi services by arranging training courses for taxi drivers.

"The courses cover English-language skills, respect for traffic laws, and service-mindedness," Rawewan said.

She added that she hoped taxi services available at Suvarnabhumi would become modern, safe, fast, convenient and accountable.

End to 'taxi mafia'

Before the NCPO intervened, "mafia-style" operations had reportedly plagued the airport's taxi services with bribe-paying taxi drivers allowed to select long-haul passengers.

Such selective services made it harder for short-haul passengers to get a taxi ride.

A short ride from the airport starts from just Bt35, while a ride to faraway destinations like Pattaya can earn a taxi driver up to Bt3,000.


the nation (26-07-2014)

[halfway inn]

"POOR PERFORMER"

Suvarnabhumi ugly duckling of Asia in H1


Passengers alight from the Airport Rail Link at Suvarnabhumi. Thailand's gateway airport underperformed its peers in the first half of 2014 due largely to the political unrest that plagued Bangkok during the period.

Suvarnabhumi airport was one of the few poor performers in Asia-Pacific for passenger traffic in the first half of this year.

While more than 90% of airports in the region recorded positive growth over the first six months, Suvarnabhumi reported a decline of 12.1%, triggered largely by the political unrest that plagued Bangkok during that period, the Canada-based Airports Council International (ACI) reported.

Separate figures from Airports of Thailand Plc showed a notable drop in Suvarnabhumi's passenger traffic in the aftermath of the military takeover, contracting by 20% between May 20 and July 28.

The ACI said the Middle East continued to lead the region with a robust increase in passenger traffic of 9%, while the rest of Asia-Pacific posted a 5% rise.

Middle East airports, increasingly important as global air hubs, saw Abu Dhabi gain 19.4% year-on-year, with Doha up by 14.5% over the period.

Cargo traffic growth in the region continued to grow, although it slowed in June.

In the first half, the growth figures were 2.5% year-on-year for the Middle East and 5% for the rest of Asia-Pacific.

The top five airports for cargo throughput in the first half were Tokyo Narita (up by 9.8% year-on-year), Shanghai Pudong (7.6%), Hong Kong (6.4%), Seoul Incheon (3.8%) and Dubai (1.8%).

The slowdown in cargo traffic growth in the Middle East was due primarily to a temporary runway closure at Dubai airport.



bangkok post (16-08-2014)

[halfway inn]

SUVARNABHUMI NEW AUTOMATIC TAXI KIOSKS

Suvarnabhumi Airport enhance services to travellers – new automatic taxi kiosks now open

BANGKOK:

Thailand’s main gateway, Suvarnabhumi Airport has launched the newly-installed automatic queue-card kiosks that aim to improve travellers’ access to taxi services, a move praised by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) as helping to enhance the image of the kingdom as a welcoming tourist destination.

Mr. Thawatchai Arunyik, Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said, “The launch of these automatic queue-card taxi kiosks will facilitate passengers using the taxi services at the Airport, to ensure that all taxis are acting in a welcoming manner to all tourists and travellers, and that their vehicles are safe and up to international standards.”

The 10 new kiosks, to be found outside Gates 4 and 7 on the first floor of Suvarnabhumi Airport’s terminal building, are designed to cut waiting times to as little as five seconds by managing the queues and directing passengers to numbered taxi ranks, at the press of a button.

Passengers in groups or with many bags will be able to opt for one of the larger taxis to ensure they have enough space. These methods will reduce the processing time to allocate the taxi.

Mr. Thawatchai said, “In the initial state, there are staff on standby these taxi kiosks to help obtain the queue cards for passengers.

They help to expedite the queues, and in a country well-known for great hospitality as Thailand, these well-groomed and hospitable staff act as one of the first hosts that are ready to greet welcome to all tourists and travellers arriving at our country’s first doorstep.”

Under the new computerised system, taxi drivers will have to take passengers on a first-come-first-served basis to any destination, either to Bangkok downtown or to other destinations; such as, Pattaya.

Passengers are required to pay the fee by the metre system, and are subject to a 50-Baht Airport taxi surcharge.

In addition, the slip printed automatically by the new system will record all details of the taxi drivers and their vehicles, allowing officials to locate them instantly in case of a lost item.

Contact Information
International Public Relations Division
Tourism Authority of Thailand
Tel: +66 (0) 2250 5500 ext. 4545-48
Fax: +66 (0) 2253 7419

[paris1973]

http://www2.bangkokpost.com/news/transport/479313/suvarnabhumi-ready-for-take-off.

[halfway inn]

SUVARNABHUMI: #47

Suvarnabhumi voted 47th among world’s best 50 airports



BANGKOK: 14-03-2015

Singapore Changi Airport again was voted the world's best airport for the third year running in the annual SkyTrax World Airport Awards 2015 announced Wednesday in Paris.

Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi was also among the list of 50 best airports.

The result was based on more than 13 million surveys completed by 112 nationalities of airline customers between May and January, and included 550 airports worldwide.

The survey evaluates customer satisfaction across key performance indicators such as check-in, arrivals, transfers and shopping facilities.

Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi Airport was named among the world’s top 50 airports, earning the 47th rank, one notch up from last year’s ranking.

Changi handles 5,000 arrivals and departures a week by 80 international airlines.

South Korea’s Incheon International Airport was named the No. 2 best airport for the third year running.

Germany’s Munich Airport retained its third rank as did Hong Kong International as fourth rank in 2014.

Tokyo International (Haneda) climbed one notch to No 5 from 6 in 2014.

The Skytrax World Airport Awards are the most prestigious and coveted awards to recognise product and service quality across the world’s airport industry.

Also known as the Passenger’s Choice Awards, it was launched by air transport advisory group SkyTrax since 1999.

Of the world’s top 10 airports, six Asian airports have made to the list.

The top 10 airports in 2015 according to SkyTrax are:

1. Singapore Changi Airport

2. Incheon International Airport

3. Munich Airport

4. Hong Kong International Airport

5. Tokyo International Airport (Haneda)

6. Zurich Airport

7. Central Japan International Airport

8. London Heathrow Airport

9. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport

10. Beijing Capital International Airport



thai pbs

[Oytopikos]

A Bolivian man was arrested at Suvarnabhumi airport on Tuesday when officials found 5.2 kilograms of cocaine worth about THB20 million in his luggage.

Jose Alberto Martinez Soto, 45, was travelling from Sao Paulo via Dubai en route to Cambodia when airport officials found five plastic bags of white powder hidden in special compartments after they X-rayed his luggage.

The cocaine was valued at THB20.8 million, reported the Nation.

Soto confessed he received the cocaine from a man in Sao Paulo and was paid about THB180,000 to smuggle it to Cambodia, according to Customs Department deputy director-general Chamroen Photiyod.

Soto faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment if convicted of attempted drug smuggling and trafficking.



http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2015/09/17/bolivian-busted-thb20-million-cocaine-suvarnabhumi

[halfway inn]

Military government set to link 3 airports


An Express train pulls into the maintenance depot of SRT Electrified Train Co (SRTET), which runs the current Airport Rail Link.

Almost six years ago, the Airport Rail Link introduced a fast route to Suvarnabhumi airport, offering speedy trains taking travelers right into its terminal.

This year the government is set to offer more convenience to air travellers by starting work on a new rail system under an ambitious plan to link the Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang and U-Tapao airports together.

The Prayut Chan-o-cha government ordered a study on a new rail track from Suvarnabhumi airport to U-Tapao airport in the east of the country.

Its findings are expected in March this year.

In addition to the results of the study on this section scheduled for March, SRT governor Wuthichart Kalyanamitra said his agency will also consider another alternative to include the U-Tapao airport station in a planned high-speed rail projection from Bangkok to Pattaya and Rayong.

U-Tapao airport is scheduled to open for commercial service in July this year to help relieve overcrowding at Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports.


Bangkok post - 25 January 2016