International Flights Return to U-Tapao

Posted on Sunday 26 July 2009 by Michael

U-Tapao, the tiny Royal Thai Air Force base that also serves as a limited service public airport, is back in the news again. You may remember that the airport near Pattaya made headlines when it attempted to stand in for Bangkok’s airport(s) after they were closed by demonstrators near the end of 2008.

Now, according to the Pattaya Daily News, international flights are returning to U-Tapao, but this time they aren’t emergency measures. Korean Airlines has begun scheduled service to the airport in order to deliver vacationing Koreans directly to the beach. While the airport has been used in the past for international charter flights during the high season, but this is the first regularly scheduled international air service (although, in checking Korean Air’s web site, I can’t find a schedule, or even a destination page, for U-Tapao).

Bangkok Airways has used the airport for domestic flights for several years.

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Posted in Airport Updates

Internet Access Coming to BKK

Posted on Wednesday 15 July 2009 by Michael

Sorry for the long dry spell; there just hasn’t been much news to report on airport happenings, although it looks like things are getting better. Here’s one bit of good news:

According to Bangkok Airport Online, Bangkok’s international airport will soon be getting more than 100 new kiosks offering high speed Internet access.

They also report that the entire airport will now have free wireless Internet access (wi-fi), although no time frame was given.

Better late than never, I guess.

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More Flights, Fewer Passengers

Posted on Wednesday 17 June 2009 by Michael

It’s sort of a "good news & bad news" kind of week. Let’s start with the bad news:

Singapore Airlines reported that passenger loads were down 25% over what they were last year. The carrier handled 1.6 Million passengers in the 12 months up to May 2008, but only 1.2 Million in the following 12 months. This definitely explains why they’re offering some fantastic fares on long haul trips right now.

On the flip side, things are so good at low cost carrier Jet Star that they’re increasing the flight frequency between their new hub in Perth and destinations in Southeast Asia, such as Jakarta and Bali. Jet Star is one of my favorite low cost carriers, so now they have me thinking about checking out Perth next time I’m in Bali!

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Posted in Airlines