THAI starts flying out of Suvarnabhumi

[Guest Levent]

15/9: Thai Airways International has started scheduled domestic flights from Bangkok's new Suvarnabhumi Airport. The first flight was TG8860 to Phitsanulok, operated by a Boeing 737-400. THAI will also operate some of its Chiang Mai and Ubon Ratchathani flights out of Suvarnabhumi, two weeks ahead of the official opening when all airlines are supposed to start operating out of the new airport. Thai Air Asia and Bangkok Airways have also announced an early start of operations out of Suvarnabhumi and Jetstar Airways (previously Jetstar Asia) is the first international airline to operate there, connecting Bangkok with Singapore.

 

Various Thai airlines have operated domestic trial flights to and from Suvarnabhumi before, and THAI has also had flights to Singapore and Hong Kong. These were operated to test the airport's readiness. Bangkok's current airport, Don Muang, will close for scheduled traffic on September 28th.

[Pieter C. 5]

More turbulence at Suvarnabhumi

Monday September 11, 2006

Bangkok's new Suvarnabhumi Airport failed critical luggage handling tests Thursday, flagging problems for the scheduled opening on Sept. 28.

Twenty-two airlines participated in tests involving all 460 check-in counters handling 4,000 bags. Breakdowns related to integration of "passenger" data with the airport authority, resulting in problems with the luggage system, while some carriers did not give the authority relevant information.

 

In addition, it became apparent that some staff had not been trained on the airport's systems, which are state-of-the-art compared to the old Don Muang Airport. Jaturongkapol Sodmanee, Suvarnabhumi's deputy director-IT, told the Bangkok Post that some of the problems "resulted from participating airlines."

 

The Airport Authority of Thailand will repeat the tests in the coming weeks. Critics have voiced concerns about the airport's large size and lack of accessible public transport, with passengers required to board a shuttle bus to get to the taxi and bus terminal several km. away.

by Geoffrey Thomas

 

 

[Guest Levent]

Critics have voiced concerns about the airport's large size and lack of accessible public transport, with passengers required to board a shuttle bus to get to the taxi and bus terminal several km. away.

 

Well, the Airports of Thailand (AOT) hotshots have reconsidered this now and concluded that it might be a good idea to provide taxis for arriving passengers at the arrivals hall exit...

They built a huge access roads system and the passenger terminal has about eight lanes for traffic, allowing for plenty of space with taxis and buses, and then they come up with this crazy plan to have people get into shuttle buses first...

 

I think part of the idea here was to have one of the largest airports in the world, just for being able to say it. Suvarnabhumi has the world's tallest control tower (which in my opinion looks like a factory chimney). Never mind the smog than hangs over Bangkok almost daily and the limited visibility this causes. Probably the controllers won't be able to see the runway ends on lot of days...

 

Having said all this, I do look forward to the 'grand opening' when all airlines will start operating there and I am planning to be there that day.

[Keith T 2]

Having said all this, I do look forward to the 'grand opening' when all airlines will start operating there and I am planning to be there that day.

 

Uh, good luck!

I used HKIA on its first day of ops - now I avoid the operational commencement dates of any airport.

Edited September 15, 2006 by Keith T

[Edwin Yii 0]

evry new system = trial & error...

[TK 0]

its normal...but it will work.

it happen to any "new" airport... remember KLIA...

Nobody knows where my aircraft is... <_ ...even engineer who parked the plane>

[Kevin Teh 0]

its good to start operation weeks early... let's see if the problem is solved before the official opening

[Guest Levent]

I used HKIA on its first day of ops - now I avoid the operational commencement dates of any airport.

 

Well, I never said that I would actually fly in or out of Suvarnabhumi that day. I think it would be wise to avoid that whenever possible!

[Radzi 2]

Has any airport been hassle-free on opening day?

 

As I remembered DEN, KUL and HKG all screwed-up big time on their first day of operation.

[Keith T 2]

Has any airport been hassle-free on opening day?

 

As I remembered DEN, KUL and HKG all screwed-up big time on their first day of operation.

 

I think ICN had a relatively smooth opening.

[Min Chun 0]

Nobody knows where my aircraft is... <_ ...even engineer who parked the plane>

 

Sounds serious

That time I was still a small kid..mind to tell more about it?

[Seth K 3]

As I remembered DEN, KUL and HKG all screwed-up big time on their first day of operation.

DEN definately stuck up on first day, especially moving pax around the airport

Any inside pix of this NBK??

[Guest Levent]

I'll take some pics when I'm there on the 28th and post them here.

[Naim 6]

I wonder how's the NBK plan now considering this.

 

Military coup strikes Bangkok

 

From correspondents in Bangkok

September 20, 2006 03:00am

Article from: Agence France-Presse

 

Standoff ... witnesses said heavily-armed troops seized Bangkok's Government House overnight, with soldiers ordering police inside the building to lay down their arms / Reuters

 

HEAVILY-armed troops backed by tanks took control of the Thai premier's office in Bangkok while Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was out of the kingdom, witnesses said.

 

Witnesses outside Government House in central Bangkok said forces loyal to sacked military commander Lieutenant General Sonthi Boonyaratglin took control of the building in what appeared to be a coup.

 

An announcement flashed on all public television channels said police and military forces loyal to King Bhumibol Adulyadej had taken control of Bangkok “to maintain law and order”. It was accompanied by patriotic music.

...

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20444238-2,00.html

[Keith T 2]

Situation only worsens when the army splits so let's hope that doesn't happen. Otherwise it'd be a fairly peaceful coup. But hopefully it doesn't even come to a coup!

[I. Wong 0]

Even when SBW opened in June 1994, I was there to witness one B734 arriving from Kuching had no space to park and had to wait for a F50 to leave for 30 minutes.

 

[Guest Levent]

We just heard about the coup when we woke up. Apart from closed schools there is nothing really unusual where we live. Many people don't seem to know what's going on at all. The BBC and CNN are blocked, while the Thai channels are showing pictures of the King.

[Imran K. 0]

We just heard about the coup when we woke up. Apart from closed schools there is nothing really unusual where we live. Many people don't seem to know what's going on at all. The BBC and CNN are blocked, while the Thai channels are showing pictures of the King.

 

BBC and CCN are blocked? How so?

 

Looks like another "propaganda-rally"... <_>

[Peter Smith 1]

The media only make the situation worse.

 

FYI, Suvarnabhumi will use the IATA code BKK, with Don Muang becoming DMK.

[Pieter C. 5]

Levent,

 

Congratulations with the publication of your article about Suvarnabhumi airport in the January 2007 issue of AirlinerWorld

 

3 pages of great information about the airport, including some fine pictures, some of them also already shown here at MW; well done

[Pieter C. 5]

Domestic flights with no international connections move back to Don Muang (DMK)

 

Airports of Thailand last week approved the use of Don Muang Airport for domestic flights with no international connections beginning in March, according to press reports. Don Muang was to have been closed to commercial traffic in September when the new Suvarnabhumi Airport opened for business. The Bangkok Post said reopening DMK, which now handles only charter flights, would give airport officials "flexibility" to solve problems at the new facility.