Thailand's 20-year airports development planned

BANGKOK, November 27 (TNA) - The Thai Ministry of Transport has prepared a 20-year airport development plan to further upgrade 28 airports countrywide to cope with a frog-leap number of international passengers. Vice Minister for Transport Thirapong Rodprasert announced the 20-year plan, while presiding over an event marking the 84th anniversary of his ministry's Department of Airport, which supervises the 20-year airport development plan, in Bangkok on Monday. The department's director-general, Darun Sangchai, said, meanwhile, that the use of Thai airports nationwide has increased by 10 per cent on average over the past eight years, prompting his department to accelerate aviation facilities to cope with the growing demand. Darun acknowledged the 20-year plan will cover the design and further development of all the nearly 30 Thai airports under his department's jurisdiction to become a nationwide airport network that will also be connected with other transport systems and will be in line with the growing demand and domestic tourist sites. Darun revealed that his department first developed regional airports in the southern Krabi Province and the northeastern Khon Kaen Province, funded by state budgets last year, and will then develop three other airports in the southern Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Trang Provinces over the next 10 years with a total state budget set at over 30 billion baht. Besides, his department plans to invite the private sector to invest in developing commercial areas in the terminals of Mae Sot Airport in the Lower Thai North and Ubon Ratchathani Airport in the Thai Northeast next year through the official bidding process, after which the private sector will be invite to jointly invest in the management of many Thai airports, including those in Nakhon Ratchasima Province in the Thai Northeast, Lampang and Petchabun Provinces in the Thai North and Chum Phon Province in the Thai South, expected to be started within the next few years. According to the senior official, his ministry has a policy to transfer the supervision of the development of some airports to Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited (AOT), including the Tak and Udon Thani Airports, to be in line with the Thai government's policy on connecting air transport between the country's western and eastern regions. (TNA)