Test conducted at Don Mueang Airport before reopening

BANGKOK, September 21 (TNA) - Bangkok's Don Mueang Airport was tested Friday before it resumes full-scale aviation services on October 1, 2012. The comprehensive test at the Don Mueang Airport was conducted by Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited (AOT), with Thai AirAsia being among low-cost airlines joining in the test. Don Mueang Airport Director Paranee Watthanothai led 135 people who acted as passengers to undergo a check-in process Friday morning. An arrival process of flights at Thailand's now main domestic airport in the capital was tested this afternoon, before concerned officials evaluate the tests. According to the AOT, the Don Mueang Airport is now 95 per cent ready for its full-scale reopening now, in the wake of its flood-damage closure since late last year, as the construction of its floodwalls is scheduled to be complete in mid October 2012. AOT acknowledged that it has also worked closely with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) to drain water during heavy downpours, and that water pumps at the Don Mueang Airport can drain up to one million cubic meters of water a day; so the airport should be safe from any repeated flooding this year. AOT said that from October 1, 2012 onward, 166 flights will operate at the Don Muang Airport daily, with eight buses to be deployed to carry air passengers between the Domestic Don Mueang Airport and the Suvarnabhumi International Airport, departing from both places every 20-30 minutes, and that officials in charge will then assess and decide whether the bus frequency should then increase. (TNA)