Airports of Thailand (AOT) has announced plans to expand its six international airports to accommodate 210 million passengers by 2032. Kerati Kijmanawat, AOT’s director, highlighted that this aligns with the Ministry of Transport’s 2023-2027 strategic plan to position Thailand as a regional aviation hub.
According to Mr. Kerati, Suvarnabhumi International Airport aims to serve 120 million passengers by 2030, while Don Mueang International Airport is targeting 40 million. By 2032, Chiang Mai International Airport is expected to handle 20 million passengers, Phuket International Airport 18 million by 2028, and Mae Fah Luang Chiang Rai and Krabi International Airports are each forecasted to manage 6 million passengers.
Mr. Kerati noted that Suvarnabhumi, once ranked among the world’s top 10 airports, has dropped to 58th place according to Skytrax. He attributed this decline to a lack of facilities compared to leading airports in Singapore, Tokyo, Istanbul, and Paris.
AOT aims to restore Suvarnabhumi’s standing, with a three-phase plan to bring it back into the top 20 global airports. The first phase (2025-2027) will focus on improving airport efficiency, the second phase (2028-2032) will establish it as a leader in airport services, and the third phase (by 2037) aims to position AOT among the top airport operators globally.
As part of this effort, AOT will introduce new technology to streamline international passenger processing times, reducing arrival processing from 30 to 25 minutes (a 17% improvement) and departure processing from 45 to 30 minutes (a 33% improvement).
The construction of Suvarnabhumi’s new South Terminal will proceed as planned, with a budget of 120 billion baht. The terminal’s design will take 14 months, with construction beginning in early 2027 and expected to last four and a half years. Once completed, it will accommodate 70 million passengers and improve access from the south via Bang Na-Trat Road, linking to the Bang Na-Chon Buri Expressway for added convenience.
Additionally, a fourth runway will be built on the eastern side of the airport. The design phase will take around 10 months, with bidding for construction expected in early 2027. AOT will also propose expansions of the East and West Terminals to handle future passenger growth.
(Source: Bangkok Post)
