Suvarnabhumi International Airport May Open Ahead of Schedule

[Gaybutton]

Just about all of the Thai news media revealed today that Suvarnabhumi International Airport may actually open ahead of schedule and begin domestic operations as early as September 15.

 

Here is one of the reports, from THE NATION:

_____

 

New Airport to Take Local Flights From Sept 15

 

Caretaker Transport Minister Pongsak Ruktapongpisal yesterday fixed September 15 as the new date for Suvarnabhumi Airport to start operating.

 

While the new deadline was for domestic flights only, the Transport Ministry was sticking to September 28 as the day for the airport to be inaugurated officially.

 

However Thai AirAsia and Bangkok Airways would not be among the airlines ready to use the airport from September 15.

 

"We definitely can't move operations there on September 15," a source at Bangkok Airways said. "We have a lot of work to do and we are dealing with a number of foreign travellers

[Bob]

For all of those connecting on international and domestic flights for the last two weeks of September, I feel sorry for you (I wonder how long it takes to travel between the two airports?). I'm glad

I don't arrive until October.

[Gaybutton]

That's a very good point, Bob, and the airport's own web site has an article published saying that just such confusion is likely. I have not been able to find anything published that provides any information at all about how transfers and luggage between the two airports is going to be handled during the transition. According to the article, it seems that chaos will reign. So, what else is new?

 

Here is the article:

 

http://www.bangkokairportonline.com/node/46

 

Suvarnabhumi International Airport could be opened for commercial service two weeks prior to the Sept 28 launch day but only for certain domestic flights with no connections required.

 

Caretaker prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has approved the proposal, floated by the Transport Ministry, as a way to enable the airport operator and some carriers to prepare for the official opening date.

 

However, some airlines are questioning the merits and practicality of such a move.

 

Executives of airlines with domestic operations say they are already struggling to relocate from Bangkok International Airport (Don Muang) to Suvarnabhumi by Sept 28.

 

The proposal for limited flights also reflected a lack of understanding about how the aviation business worked, the airline chiefs added.

 

''How could you define whether all passengers on flight X bound for Bangkok are not going on to other destinations with other flights?'' asked one airline executive, who asked not to be named.

 

Arranging aircraft to arrive and depart from the new Suvarnabhumi airport while maintaining flights in and out of the existing Don Muang airport, along with support at two locations would pose major technical problems.

 

But perhaps more problematic is how to avoid confusion among passengers and how to facilitate their flight connections if needed on the two sites that are 27 km apart, given Bangkok's notorious traffic jams in between.

 

Most carriers, Thai and foreign, have had difficulties establishing themselves at the new airport due to the limited time given by the Airports of Thailand (AoT) to set up offices and systems there.

 

The major airlines with domestic networks including Thai Airways International, Bangkok Airways, Thai AirAsia, One-Two-Go, Nok Air and PB Air, have not been consulted about starting flights on Sept 15 at Suvarnabhumi.

 

''They (authorities) never asked us whether the idea of early opening is sound or whether we were ready for that.'' one executive said.

 

Caretaker transport minister Pongsak Raktapongpaisal told reporters yesterday that the new airport was ready to operate ahead of schedule, after 20 commercial flights on July 29 showed successful results.

 

Somchai Sawasdeepon, the general manager of Suvarnabhumi airport, echoed the airport's readiness for Sept 15 flights but acknowledged airlines' concern about imminent confusion among passengers on issues such as flight connections and land transport.

 

''There are a lot of questions with no easy answers that need to be tackled,'' he said, noting that AoT had held a meeting on the issue yesterday afternoon.

 

Low-cost carriers such as One-Two-Go and Nok Air may have fewer problems shifting to the new airport ahead of time than Thai Airways and Bangkok Airways, which carry a lot of passengers with connecting flight needs.

 

The international airline industry has repeatedly warned about the potential for severe negative consequences of opening Suvarnabhumi airport prematurely.

 

They also suggested moving the opening date to the end of the year on signs that the airport is far from ready.

 

Mr. Thaksin has been eager to launch the massive infrastructure project under his premiership ahead of the new election scheduled for Oct 15.

 

The schedule for all international flights and the rest of the country's domestic services to shift to the new site on Sept 28 remains unchanged.

 

Don Muang airport, which handles about 38 million passengers a year, will be officially closed on Sept 28 to all commercial flights and thereafter used for VIP journeys, chartered flights and small private aircraft.

 

Thai Airways will conduct two international test flights to and from the new airport on Sept 1. Those flights are open only to airline employees, who were offered one-night air-hotel packages to Singapore and Hong Kong for about 5,000 baht.

 

[Guest freeyourmind]

"The international airline industry has repeatedly warned about the potential for severe negative consequences of opening Suvarnabhumi airport prematurely"

 

Key words... Repeatedly warned and severe negative consequences

 

But does that matter what the International industry suggests??

 

So typical

 

Stand by for a major CF. (CLUSTER FCUK)

 

Pardon my French

[Gaybutton]

Stand by for a major CF. (CLUSTER FCUK)

 

It does seem like that's a likely possibility, doesn't it? And you're right. As is so often the case in Thailand, this idea seems to be ad hoc and impromptu without anything being thoroughly thought through and without even consulting the airlines. So, I repeat . . . what else is new?

 

It doesn't seem unusual to me to see a government snatch defeat right out of the jaws of victory. After all, that's the way we do it in the USA, isn't it? Why shouldn't it be universal?

 

By the way, if you have been wondering how to pronounce the name of the airport, here's what the web site says:

 

How is it pronounced:

 

"su-wan-na-poom"