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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Friday 14 September 2007 :-
Airlines praise improved Suvarnabhumi Airport
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National and international airlines have praised an overall improved service at Suvarnabhumi airport which will mark its first anniversary on Sep 28, airport director Serirat Prasutanond said Thursday.
He said a number of airline managers have lauded the continuous improvement of service at Suvarnbhumi airport, adding that airport officials had followed up on arising problems and worked out solutions accordingly.
One of the positive changes is a permission for licensed taxis to offer service on the second floor of the passenger terminal, starting Oct. 1 to solve the problem of unauthorized taxis touting for passengers, Serirat said.
The ongoing improvement of the airport includes additional restrooms in October and more check-in counters for passengers soon.
Serirat said the CTX luggage scanner system has been fully operated after some technical problems earlier.
On the noise pollution which has triggered dissatisfaction among residents near the airport, Serirat said negotiations with affected homeowners would help find solutions that satisfy both sides.
The Airports of Thailand (AoT) will pay a combined compensation of 170 million baht to affected residents on Friday.
Asked about an extension of space for airline offices at Suvarnabhumi, the airport director said the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) would be in charge of drawing out an initial plan.
The ICAO will also conduct a feasibility study to determine if Don Mueang airport should be operated in compatible with Suvarnabhumi airport. All issues will be finalized in October 2007, he said.
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Posted on: 9:34 pm on Sep. 13, 2007
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Sunday 16 September 2007 :-
Airport crackdown
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More than 900 illegal taxi drivers and tour guides were arrested at Suvarnabhumi airport in June and July as the airport is working harder to ensure passenger safety.
Suvarnabhumi airport director Serirat Prasutanont said the crackdown had brought illegal taxi and guide activities down by 70-to-80 per cent.
The airport sought police help in cracking down on illegal operators preying on visitors. In June, police made 235 arrests, and in July, 686 arrests.
With more than 10 people arrested more than once, the Airports of Thailand (AoT) 's legal division is exploring how to bar any people arrested more than three times for such an offence from entering the airport premises.
He admitted such illegal operations had damaged the country's image because some customers were over-charged, assaulted and robbed.
Mr Serirat said the airport is also preparing records of transportation and tourism agents and their vehicles' registration numbers.
Notices would be put up at the airport displaying taxi charges for trips to other provinces as fixed by the Land Transport Department. For a destination within Bangkok, the charge would be as shown by the meter, plus the 50-baht airport charge. Mr Serirat added that any taxi drivers found to have overcharged a passenger would be prohibited from picking up passengers at the airport for at least 10 days.
The crackdown has been a blessing for the legal limousine and taxi business. Limousine service operators now made 850-900 trips a day, up from 700 previously.
Taxi trips rose from 4,500 to 6,000 a day.
Starting next month, taxi pick-ups would be relocated from the first floor to the second floor of the terminal, where passengers arrive, he said.
Some Bangkok Mass Transit Authority buses would be allowed to pick up and drop off passengers on the first and fourth floors of the terminal.
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Posted on: 8:15 pm on Sep. 15, 2007
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Thursday 20 September 2007 :-
International flights may return to Don Mueang
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The board of Airports of Thailand (AoT) is to decide today if it will invite non-connecting international flights to return to Don Mueang airport to relieve congestion at Suvarnabhumi. An AoT source said the proposal is in line with a directive from the cabinet asking if better use could be made of Don Mueang.
The cabinet instructed AoT to look into the matter last February when it agreed Don Mueang should reopen for non-connecting domestic flights.
AoT then referred the matter for study to the International Civil Aviation Organisation. The ICAO agreed that non-connecting international flights should follow suit, the source said.
Suvarnabhumi was designed to serve up to 45 million passengers annually. But this year's traffic is expected to rise to 46.7 million passengers, from 43.12 million last year.
Traffic congestion has eased slightly as Thai Airways International, Nok Air and One-Two-Go airlines moved their non-connecting domestic flights back to Don Mueang when it reopened on March 25.
AoT will invite 25 airlines, including eight no-frills flyers, to move their non-connecting international flights back to Don Mueang on a voluntary basis.
Non-connecting international services of the 25 airlines account for 23% of all flights and 15% of all passengers visiting Suvarnabhumi airport.
If all these international flights return, the passenger volume at Suvarnabhumi airport will drop to about 37.2 million passengers a year. This means the new airport will not reach its saturation point until 2013.
This will also allow AoT to delay investing in Suvarnabhumi's expansion.
Transport permanent secretary Chaisawat Kittipornpaiboon said the tripartite committee agreed yesterday to urge AoT to finalise compensation within the next month for people living around Suvarnabhumi who were subjected to more than 70 decibels of noise.
AoT should conclude agreements to buy the 154 properties currently enduring that noise level.
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Posted on: 11:52 pm on Sep. 19, 2007
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Friday 28 September 2007 :-
Suvarnabhumi still plagued by problems - A year after it opened, just half of repairs done
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One year after its opening for commercial flights, Suvarnabhumi international airport is still plagued by a host of problems with only half of them having been fixed.
When it was unveiled on Sept 28 last year, the airport in Samut Prakan's Bang Phli district was portrayed by Airports of Thailand (Aot) as a new, important landmark that Thais would be proud of. Instead, the airport is being remembered for all its flaws and scandals which can be traced back to the previous Thaksin Shinawatra government.
The airport has faced a host of problems ranging from cracks in its runways to jammed halls and leaking roofs. And all the blame has been heaped on AoT.
The agency has just released its annual report on the first year of Suvarnabhumi's operations. Almost the entire report is devoted to telling the public what problems have already been fixed and what will be done to improve Suvarnabhumi and eventually make it a key regional airport to rival those in Singapore and Hong Kong. AoT also pledges to make Suvarnabhumi one of the world's top ten airports in the next two years.
The AoT report only gives a sketchy picture of the flaws found at the airport so far. However, another report compiled by a panel set up to monitor the progress and problems at Suvarnabhumi provides more details that paint a worrying picture of the airport.
The panel, led by Civil Aviation Department director-general Chaisak Angkhasuwan, has found 61 problems at the airport and to date only 30 of them have been fixed.
The 61 problems were identified in the 104-page report which also offers solutions for them, according to Yodyiam Teptaranon, a member of the panel and the AoT board.
The report puts the problems into three categories: those involving the terminal, including structural flaws; those concerning information technology and operations, and service problems.
To deal with problems in the first category, AoT has so far provided more chairs and trolleys for use inside the terminal, improved signs, built another 204 restrooms to add to the original 1,464 and provided more space for passengers in the arrival hall.
But the report also shows concern over the lack of progress in the work to remove the electrical circuit control board from the upper floor of the passenger terminal for safety reasons.
There are now 1,050 security surveillance cameras inside the airport's passenger terminal, according to AoT. However, the report says more close-circuit cameras are needed for better security. The airport also needs more security equipment and personnel with a better management to deal with emergencies.
Also, the report says Suvarnabhumi's information technology system should be upgraded to have, among other things, a centralised IT security policy, a bomb bunker, and a dedicated telephone line to alert authorities in case of emergency.
It also suggests that airport restaurants improve their service, more telephones and internet outlets be provided for airport users, and better handling of passengers' luggage.
Suvarnabhumi airport director Serirat Prasutanond said AoT was aware of all the problems and was working hard to solve them.
The Council for National Security, which staged a coup that toppled the Thaksin government just 10 days before the opening of Suvarnabhumi, has made Gen Saprang Kalaynamitr chairman of the AoT board to deal with the problems faced by the airport.
Gen Saprang's main task is to tackle all irregularities including certain commercial contracts that are believed to benefit some politicians and officials.
However, a source in the AoT board said there has been very little progress. The problem lies in the fact the board had to deal with so many problems ranging from runway cracks to a shortage of restrooms that it could not focus on big issues. the source said.
The story is part of a series on the first anniversary of Suvarnabhumi airport.
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Posted on: 12:20 am on Sep. 28, 2007
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Popst dated Sunday 30 September 2007 :-
Drive against airport's illegal taxis at Suvarnabhumi Airport losing steam - Mafia gangs trying hard to bring them back
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Police are worried illegal taxi drivers and tour guides will reappear at Suvarnabhumi airport under the influence of three mafia gangs, which still flourish thanks to alleged support by high-ranking military officers and politicians.
Despite success in tackling them in recent months, some persistent taxi drivers and tourist guides have been seen recently at the airport, as the state crackdown on these illegal businesses begins to lose steam.
"They will come back if our suppression efforts tail off," said deputy commissioner of Police Region 1 Wut Liptapanlop.
One tour agent at the airport claimed police reduced the fines they imposed on taxi drivers, which persuaded them to come back to the airport to run their illegal service again.
Pol Maj-Gen Wut said police had arrested 320 illegal taxi drivers and tour guides since June 1 in a joint operation between tourist police and the Airports of Thailand to wipe out illegal businesses.
Many wrongdoers were found affiliated to 36 companies which run 3,000 taxis altogether, Pol Maj-Gen Wut said.
The firms are reportedly directed by three mafia gangs.
Police know about the gangs, but have not been able to reach the people who run them.
Most familiar to the police are three mafia figures, identified as "Je Tik," with alleged connections to a military general, "Puyai Daeng," who claimed he was a close aide to a politician, and "Sak Pak Phanang," leader of an influential group from Nakhon Si Thammarat.
Many taxi drivers and tour guides were willing to pay money to these gangs in exchange for protection against police and airport officials, so they can go in and out the airport freely.
Among the arrested wrongdoers, 35 have been caught twice or more before.
Illegal taxi drivers are fined 2,000 baht at the most if they break the vehicle law.
Pol Maj-Gen Wut said the Revenue Department had been asked to enforce a tax law against the 36 companies, which earned money illegally.
The law demands that they report to the government their earnings and pay tax.
Violators would be jailed and fined up to two million baht.
The mafia gangs, whose taxis run an average of 350 trips a day, had made nearly 275 million baht since the airport officially opened on Sept 28 last year, according to police.
"We have to suppress them because illegal taxi drivers often rob and injure passengers, which mars the country's image," Pol Maj-Gen Wut said.
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Posted on: 9:35 am on Sep. 30, 2007
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Tuesday 16 October 2007 :-
Suvarnabhumi Airport near capacity
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Official figures released yesterday confirm that Suvarnabhumi Airport is closing in on its designed capacity just one year after it opened.
Total passenger movements through Bangkok's new international airport reached 41.8 million from October 2006 to September 2007, or 92.88% of its 45million-passenger-a-year capacity.
The 155-billion-baht airport handled 267,480 aircraft movements, including both takeoffs and landings, according to Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT), the majority state-owned company that operates the country's six major airports.
Cargo shipments through Suvarnabhumi hit 1.23 million tonnes, representing 41% of the airport's annual capacity of three million tonnes.
The figures confirmed earlier projections that the airport would reach full capacity only two or three years after its inception.
The crowding has already prompted speculation that AoT may shift some international traffic to the old Don Muang airport, which has served some nonconnecting domestic flights since last March.
Serirat Prasutanond, the general manager of Suvarnabhumi airport, said passenger volume through the airport was likely to reach 44.5 million in its second year of operations in 2008, thus putting more strain on the facility.
AoT is considering whether to proceed with the original master plan for expanding Suvarnabhumi with help from the International Civil Aviation Organisation, which is undertaking a study.
Mr Serirat said the AoT would likely submit recommendations on how to relieve congestion at Suvarnabhumi for the Transport Ministry in the ''near future''.
The 93-year-old Don Muang airport has processed 3.17 million passengers from March to the end of September.
In other words, about 40% of domestic flights where shifted to Don Muang.
AoT figures show that Suvarnabhumi handled 32.60 million international passengers in its first year, an increase of 4.85% from the number that passed through Don Muang last year. It also handed 191,278 international aircraft movements, up 5.01%. Suvarnabhumi handled 9.23 million domestic passengers and 76,202 aircraft movements.
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Posted on: 1:26 am on Oct. 16, 2007
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Thursday 18 October 2007 :-
Suvarnabhumi Airport ranks higher in online poll
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The embattled management of Suvarnabhumi Airport have received some consolation from a reader poll by an independent online travel magazine that voted it the world's fourth best airport.
The top three finishers in order in the Smart Travel Asia poll were Hong Kong International Airport, Singapore Changi and Kuala Lumpur International Airport in its Travel Poll 2007.
The poll ranked Suvarnabhumi ahead of South Korea's Incheon International Airport, which last March was named the ''Best Airport Worldwide for 2006'' by the Geneva-based Airports Council International (ACI). Incheon was fifth in the Smart Travel Asia poll.
Except for the inclusion of Suvarnabhumi, the Smart Travel Asia poll was consistent with the much more extensive survey released in August by UK-based Skytrax. That survey placed Hong Kong first on the list of top 10 Airports of the Year for 2007, followed by Incheon and Changi, which tied for second place.
Skytrax put Kuala Lumpur in fifth place, while Suvarnabhumi failed to crack the top 10.
The methodology of the Smart Travel Asia poll was not disclosed, though the online magazine said it was ''based on actual experience, word-of-mouth through friends and colleagues, as well as an idea of the brand drawn from advertising and editorial exposure in the media, a great deal of this online''.
The magazine noted that Suvarnabhumi, which has had its share of teething troubles, was a ''a vast improvement'' over Don Muang airport, which was closed for six months after 92 years in operation and reopened in March this year for some non-connecting domestic flights.
Serirat Prasutanond, the general manager of Suvarnabhumi airport, said the Smart Travel Asia poll was a welcome encouragement to the airport operator. But he conceded that it could be based on much less comprehensive polling criteria and sample size.
Perceived as the industry yardstick, the Skytrax 2007 survey was based on 7.8 million detailed passenger surveys covering 170 airports, conducted over 11 months.
The Skytrax survey also covers more than 40 categories of product and service quality, including terminal cleanliness, staff efficiency and courtesy, terminal signage and walking distances.
In the ACI rankings, Suvarnabhumi is now ranked 40th.
Mr Serirat said that AoT wanted to see Suvarnabhumi ranked in the top 10 in the ACI table by 2009.
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Posted on: 9:31 am on Oct. 18, 2007
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Monday 14 January 2008 :-
Fog causes THAI flight diversions
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Thai Airways International attributed flight delays in the past week mainly to dense fogs at Suvarnabhumi Airport, which forced the airline to land a number of flights at other airports.
Apinan Sumanaseni, president of the national carrier, said the change of landing destinations cost THAI Bt200,000 - Bt400,000 per flight. He did not provide the number of all flights affected.
Flights were diverted to Chiang Mai, Don Muang and UTapao. Aside from the financial costs, the diversions also disrupted airline schedules.
"Weather conditions slightly affected THAI. Unable to land at Suvarnabhumi, the planes have been diverted to other airports until the conditions at Suvarnabhumi are clear. This resulted in additional fuel costs," Apinan said.
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Thai Girls : Meet Active Thai Girls
Posted on: 7:06 am on Jan. 14, 2008
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paddyc01
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PL69 I dont in any way mean to flame you but wouldnt it just be much better if you said read the Bangkok post instead of taking up forum space like this?
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Posted on: 10:39 pm on Jan. 14, 2008
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PussyLover 69
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Report from Bangkok Post dated Thursday 17 January 2008 :-
Fire prevention found substandard at Suvarnabhumi Airport
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The fire prevention system at Suvarnabhumi airport is substandard, a team of engineers has concluded in a report. The report, completed by experts at the Engineering Institute of Thailand, is to reach the Airports of Thailand today.
According to the report, fire-fighting equipment as well as installation and maintenance are below standard.
Besides this, smoke and heat detectors and sprinklers do not cover every area of the passenger terminal. Areas that are not covered include some electrical control rooms, corridors and conveyor belt zones.
Apart from being of poor quality, detectors are installed behind wire pipelines and racks and air vents that may hamper their function and obstruct maintenance.
Some sprinklers are out of order.
There are not enough manually operated fire alarm switches. Safety standards require one switch every 60 metres along passages.
The survey team also found some fire controls indicating false fire alarms and malfunctions but these had not been attended to.
Most of the fire exit signs are not sufficiently illuminated and some signs have direction arrows that confuse toilets and fire exits.
A number of electric appliances such as switches are easily broken.
Most wire pipelines are substandard, and this includes poor ground wire installation, it said.
Shops block some fire exits and some fire hose cabinets while some of these hose cabinets have incomplete sets of instruments.
The report also indicated water leakages in electrical control rooms with drops of water falling onto control panels. Many control rooms are made into storage and living quarters.
Flammable perfume and cosmetic products are stored behind illuminated advertisement boxes and partition boards of shops were made of flammable wood, plywood and hardboard.
Besides, a Thai pavilion blocks the airflow to ventilating fans and a large-scale sculpture and a restaurant block passages to fire exits in Concourse D building, the report said.
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Bangkok Girls : Meet Attractive Thai Girls
Posted on: 2:24 am on Jan. 17, 2008
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