Suvarnabhumi Airport

Suvarnabhumi Airport ท่าอากาศยานสุวรรณภูมิ
IATA: BKK – ICAO: VTBS
Summary
Airport type	Public
Operator	Airports of Thailand PCL (AOT)
Serves	Bangkok and Samut Prakan
Location	999 Mu 1 Tambon Racha Thewa, Amphoe Bang Phli, Samut Prakan, Thailand
Hub for	Asia Atlantic Airlines Bangkok Airways Jet Asia Airways Orient Thai Airlines Thai Airways International Thai Vietjet Air Thai Smile
Focus city for	Cathay Pacific China Airlines Emirates EVA Air SriLankan Airlines
Elevation AMSL	5 ft / 2 m
Coordinates	13°41′33″N 100°45′00″E / 13.69250°N 100.75000°ECoordinates: 13°41′33″N 100°45′00″E / 13.69250°N 100.75000°E
Website	suvarnabhumiairport.com
Map
BKK
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 01R/19L 4,000 13,123 Asphalt 01L/19R 3,700 12,139 Asphalt
Statistics (2016)
Total passengers 55,473,021 5.90% Aircraft movements 333,263 7.20% Freight (tonnes) 1,263,013 1.83% Economic impact $7.2 billion[1] Social impact 668.8 thousand[1]
Source:AOT REPORT 15

Suvarnabhumi Airport (rtgs: Suwannaphum; Thai pronunciation: [sù.wān.ná.pʰūːm]^[2]) (IATA: BKK, ICAO: VTBS), also known as (New) Bangkok International Airport, is one of two international airports serving Bangkok, Thailand. The other one is Don Mueang International Airport.^[3][4] Suvarnabhumi covers an area of 2,980 hectares (7,400 acres) (18,625 rai).

Suvarnabhumi was officially opened for limited domestic flight service on 15 September 2006, and opened for most domestic and all international commercial flights on 28 September 2006.^[5]

The airport is currently the main hub for Thai Airways International, Bangkok Airways, and Orient Thai Airlines. It also serves as regional gateway and connecting point for various foreign carriers.

The airport is on what had formerly been known as Nong Nguhao (Cobra Swamp) in Racha Thewa in Bang Phli, Samut Prakan, about 25 kilometres (16 mi) east of downtown Bangkok. The name Suvarnabhumi (from Sanskrit: स्वर्णभूमि (IAST: Svarṇabhūmi, "Golden Land")), was chosen by King Bhumibol Adulyadej and refers to the golden kingdom, thought to have been located somewhere in Southeast Asia.

The terminal building was designed by Helmut Jahn of Murphy / Jahn Architects. It was constructed primarily by ITO JV. The airport has the world's tallest free-standing control tower (132.2 metres or 434 feet), and the world's fourth largest single-building airport terminal (563,000 square metres or 6,060,000 square feet).

Suvarnabhumi is the twentieth busiest airport in the world, sixth busiest airport in Asia, and the busiest in the country, having handled 53 million passengers in 2012,^[6] and is also a major air cargo hub, with a total of 95 airlines. On social networks, Suvarnabhumi was the world's most popular site for taking Instagram photographs in 2012.^[7]

The airport inherited the airport code, BKK, from Don Mueang after the older airport ceased international commercial flights. The modern Motorway 7 connects the airport, Bangkok, and the heavily industrial eastern seaboard of Thailand, where most export manufacturing takes place.

History

Terminal interior

Border between the concourse and the terminal seen from the arrival area

Terminal

Departure hall

A play area, entitled Wonder World, at the airport's departure lounge

A depiction of the Samudra manthan at the airport

Land purchase, early construction

The need for the new airport was recognized in 1973 when 8,000 acres of land was purchased 40 kilometres east of Bangkok. The site, known as Cobra Swamp, was drained and named Suvarnabhumi, meaning "realm of gold". On 14 October 1973, student-led protests led to the overthrow of the military government of Prime Minister Thanom Kittikachorn and the project was shelved.

After a series of ups and downs, the "New Bangkok International Airport" company (NBIA) was formed in 1996. Due to political and economic instabilities, notably the Asian financial crisis of 1997, construction did not begin until six years later in January 2002 by the government of Thaksin Shinawatra.

Early construction, airport tests, and official opening

The airport was due to open in late-2005, but a series of budget overruns, construction flaws, and allegations of corruption plagued the project.

A further delay was caused by the discovery that the airport had been built over an old graveyard. Superstitious construction workers claimed to have seen ghosts there. On 23 September 2005, the Thai airports authority held a ceremony where 99 Buddhist monks chanted to appease the spirits.^[8]

Full tests of the airport took place on 3 and 29 July 2006. Six airline—Thai Airways International, Nok Air, Thai Air Asia, Bangkok Airways, PBair, and One-Two-GO—used the airport as a base for twenty domestic flights.^[9][10] The first international test flights were conducted on 1 September 2006. Two Thai Airways aircraft, a Boeing 747-400 and an Airbus A300-600, simultaneously departed the airport at 09:19 to Singapore and Hong Kong. At 15:50 the same aircraft flew back and made simultaneous touchdowns on runways 19L and 19R. These test flights demonstrated the readiness of the airport to handle traffic.

On 15 September 2006, the airport started limited daily operations with Jetstar Asia Airways operating three Singapore to Bangkok flights. Bangkok Airways moved to the airport on 21 September. AirAsia and Thai AirAsia followed on 25 September and on 26 September Nok Air moved to Suvarnabhumi Airport. During this initial phase, as well as in the previous tests, the airport used the temporary IATA code NBK.

Suvarnabhumi officially opened at 03:00 on 28 September 2006, taking over all flights from Don Mueang. The first flight to arrive was a Lufthansa Cargo flight LH8442 from Mumbai at 03:05.^[11] The first commercial arrival was Japan Airlines at 03:30. The first passenger arrival was Aerosvit flight VV171 from Kiev at 04:30, and the first cargo departure was Saudi Arabian Airlines flight SV-984 to Riyadh at 05:00.^[12] Aerosvit also had the first passenger departure (VV172 to Kiev) around 05:30.^[13]

Initial difficulties

Difficulties were reported in the first few days of the airport's operation. On the first day alone, sluggish luggage handling was common—the first passenger arrival by Aerosvit took an hour for the luggage to start coming out, and some flights did not have their luggage coming out even after four hours. Flights were delayed (Thai Airways claimed that 17 of 19 flights were delayed that day), and there were failures with the check-in system.^[14][15] Subsequent problems included the failure of the cargo computer system, and the departure boards displaying the wrong information, resulting in confused passengers (especially as unlike Don Mueang, there were no "final calls" issued).^[16]

Months after its opening, issues of congestion, construction quality, signage, provision of facilities, and soil subsidence continued to plague the project, prompting calls to reopen Don Mueang to allow for repairs to be made.^[17] Expert opinions varied widely on the extent of Suvarnabhumi's problems as well as their root cause. Most airlines stated that damage to the airport was minimal.^[18][19] Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont reopened Don Mueang for domestic flights on a voluntary basis on 16 February 2007, with 71 weekly flights moved back initially, but no international flights.^[20]

Capacity and safety issues

Tarmac problems

In January 2007, ruts were discovered in the runways at Suvarnabhumi.^[21] The east runway was scheduled to close for repairs. Expert opinions varied as to the cause of the ruts.^[18] Airport authorities and airline representatives maintained that the airport was still safe and resisted suggestions that the airport should be completely closed and all flights moved back to Don Mueang.^[22]

On 27 January 2007, the Department of Civil Aviation declined to renew the airport's safety certificate, which had expired the previous day. The ICAO requires that international airports hold aerodrome safety certificates, but Suvarnabhumi continued to operate because the ICAO requirement had yet to be adopted as part of Thai law.^[23]

As of early-2016 tarmac problems persist at Suvarnabhumi. Soft spots on the tarmac, taxiways, and apron area have not been permanently fixed. Aircraft get stuck on the soft surfaces that are the result of sub-standard materials. "The constant resurfacing of the tarmac, taxiways and apron area with asphalt is an unacceptable patchwork solution. We literally need a "concrete" solution," said Tony Tyler, IATA's director general and CEO.^[24]

Plans to re-open Don Mueang for domestic flights

In January 2007, Thai Airways announced a plan to move some of its domestic operations back to Don Mueang International Airport due to overcrowding. Three days later, the Ministry of Transport recommended temporarily reopening Don Mueang while repair work on the runways at Suvarnabhumi proceeded. At that time, Thai Airways said it would shift most of its domestic flights back to Don Mueang while keeping flights with high international passenger connections such as Chiang Mai and Phuket at Suvarnabhumi. On 28 March 2009, Thai Airways discontinued all domestic flights from Don Mueang. Bangkok Airways and One-Two-GO had similar plans, but Bangkok Airways remained at Suvarnabhumi. Thai AirAsia said it would not move unless it could shift both its international and domestic operations, prompting them to stay at Suvarnabhumi for the time being. Nok Air and PBair were undecided, but Nok Air later relocated all flights to Don Mueang, where they operate today.^[25][26] As of January 2010, only Nok Air and One-Two-Go operated domestic flights from Don Mueang Airport. PBair have ceased operations altogether. One-Two-Go was integrated into Orient Thai Airlines in July 2010, but continues to operate from Don Mueang Airport. As of 1 October 2012 Air Asia has moved all of its Bangkok operations to Don Mueang International Airport (DMK) from Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK).^[27]

Thai Airbus A340-500 (HS-TLA) at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Repair and upgrades

Airports of Thailand found that the cost of fixing 60 identified problems at the airport would be less than one percent of the total airline cost and the problems could be fixed in up to four to five years. Dr Narupol Chaiyut, a member of a committee overseeing service problems at the new airport, estimated that 70 percent of the problems would be fixed in 2007. Twenty of the 60 problems were successfully fixed by February 2007.^[28]

Features

Suvarnabhumi Airport's main terminal roof is designed with structural elements and bays placed in a cantilevered, wavelike form to appear to "float" over the concourse beneath. This overall design principle was to express the former essence of the site, from which water had to be drained before construction could begin. The eight composite 2,710-ton trusses supporting the canopy of the main terminal are essentially diagrams of the bending moments acting on them, with the greatest depth at mid-span and over the supports.^[29]

The result of Helmut Jahn's vision is a structure with performance materials serve in their total composition and in use more than in their conventional roles. This maximizes daylight use in comfort with substantial energy life-cycle cost savings. The installed cooling system reduced up to 50 percent compared to a conventional system. A translucent membrane with three layers was developed to mediate between the interior and exterior climate, dealing with noise and temperature transmission, while still allowing natural flow of daylight into building.^[30]

Events

Suvarnabhumi Airport Control Tower, the world's tallest

On 25 January 2007, due to work upgrading the taxiways which suffered from small cracks, a few incoming flights were delayed and several flights were safely diverted to U-Tapao International Airport in Rayong Province.^[31]

On 26 November 2008, an illegal occupation of the airport took place by People's Alliance for Democracy, closing the departure lounge and blocking exits and leaving almost 3,000 passengers stranded in the main terminal and another 350,000 stranded inside the country, as all flights were grounded. The People's Alliance for Democracy seized the control tower at 12:00.^[32] On 2 December 2008, protesters agreed to leave the airport as they had been illegally protesting and permitted the resumption of flights. Security checks, clean-ups, and re-certification once the illegal occupation ended delayed the airport from being fully functional until 5 December 2008.^[33]

Predatory irregularities

Petty thieves and confidence men, the majority of them illegal taxi drivers or tour guides, are known to prey on tourists in the arrival hall. They belong to politically-well connected criminal groups: Kamnan Samruay, Boonruang Srisang, Sak Pakphanang, the Pattaya Mafia and Phuyai Daeng.^[34] Evicting them has proved difficult as they allegedly are well connected. (The head of the Pirap gang is supposedly related to an Airports of Thailand executive, while the Phuyai Daeng has ties to influential civil servants in Samut Prakan).^[34]

On 1 October 2010, two hundred armed men occupied the airport's parking area for an hour, blocking the building's entrances and seizing ticket booths to collect fares from motorists.^[35] Airport security personnel failed to respond, reportedly because of an internal dispute within the parking management company, the firm contracted to run the parking facilities.^[35]

Specifications

Current Airport layout

Costing an estimated 155 billion baht (US$5 billion), the airport has two parallel runways (60 m wide, 4,000 m and 3,700 m long) and two parallel taxiways to accommodate simultaneous departures and arrivals.^[36] It has a total of 120 parking bays (51 with contact gates and 69 remote gates), with five of these capable of accommodating the Airbus A380. The main passenger terminal building, with a capacity of handling 76 flight operations per hour, co-locates the international and domestic terminals, though assigning them to different parts of the concourse. In the initial phase of construction, it will be capable of handling 45 million passengers and three million tonnes of cargo per year. Above the underground rail link station and in front of the passenger terminal building is a 600-room hotel operated by Accor Group under the Novotel brand.

The airport's passenger terminal is the world's largest passenger terminal ever constructed in one phase at 563,000 square metres (6,060,000 sq ft), and is also currently the fourth biggest passenger terminal building in the world, after the Hong Kong International Airport (570,000 square metres or 6,100,000 square feet), Beijing Capital International Airport (990,000 square metres or 10,700,000 square feet), with the largest passenger terminal at Dubai International Airport (Terminal 3 is over 1,500,000 square metres or 16,000,000 square feet). The airport air-traffic control tower is the tallest in the world at 135 metres (443 ft).

Suvarnabhumi Airport has 72 jet bridges and 69 non-jet bridges. Additionally, flights are able to park at remote locations on the ramp, from which airport buses transport passengers to and from the terminal. Suvarnabhumi Airport has 18 jet bridges and 6 non-jet bridges for Airbus 380–800

Expansion

On 15 December 2011 Airports of Thailand (AOT) announced the speed up of the second phase expansion of Suvarnabhumi Airport to 2016, one year ahead of its scheduled completion in 2017.

An investment of 62.5 billion baht (US$1.95 billion/€1.49 billion) is being planned for the second phase, according to then-Transport Minister Sukampol Suwannathat. The plan is to strengthen Suvarnabhumi Airport's position as a regional aviation hub. Phase Two would raise the airport's capacity to 65 million passengers a year and would be undertaken in parallel with the construction of the new domestic terminal.^[37]

Former Transport Minister ACM Sukampol Suwannathat gave the green light to Airports of Thailand (AoT)'s plan to carry out the expansion of Suvarnabhumi airport with the construction of a new domestic terminal. The new domestic terminal will be capable of handling 20 million passengers a year. Estimated cost is 9.2 billion baht.(US$2.96 billion/€2.04 billion).

By mid-2015, the airport was handling more than 800 flights per day, higher than its 600-flight capacity. It has exceeded its capacity of 45 million passengers per year.^[38]

The two expansion projects are part of the overall airport enlargement that would see Suvarnabhumi raise its annual passenger handling capacity to 125 million passengers, 90 million international and 35 million domestic passengers by 2024 at an estimated cost of 163 billion baht.(US$5.25 billion/€3.62 billion) The expansion includes the construction of one additional runway, subsequent enlargement of domestic and international terminals, and improvements to parking bays, car parks, and other airport infrastructure.^[39]

An expansion plan to increase the passenger capacity of the airport to 65 million by building an additional satellite passenger terminal linked to the current main terminal via an underground automated people mover (APM) system is set to be voted on by the AOT board during a 17 May 2012 meeting. If the plan gains endorsement by the board it will be able to proceed to appointing a project management consultant (PMC) which will bring it one step closer to commencing construction on the much needed expansion. If all goes to plan the expansion is set to be completed in 2018. The expansion also includes a plan to expand the airport parking garage as well as the expansion of the eastern end of the main passenger terminal by 135 meters along with the construction of a new airline office building. The expansion does not include plans to construct a third runway, however. According to the Bangkok Post, the new satellite terminal will have a total of 28 gates, with eight for the Airbus A380 super jumbo jet.^[40]

The new passenger terminal will be used only by Bangkok Airways and flag carrier Thai Airways (and its budget subsidiary Thai Smile). Upon completion of satellite terminal, expected opening in early 2019, other Star Alliance members will be given a check-in concourse of Thai Airways.^[41]

Airlines and destinations

Passenger

Airlines	Destinations
Aeroflot	Moscow–Sheremetyevo
Aeroflot operated by Rossiya	Moscow-Vnukovo[42]
Air Astana	Almaty, Astana
Air Austral	Saint–Denis de la Réunion
Air China	Beijing–Capital, Hangzhou, Tianjin
Air France	Paris–Charles de Gaulle
Air India	Delhi, Mumbai
Air Macau	Macau
All Nippon Airways	Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita
Asia Atlantic Airlines	Tokyo–Narita, Denpasar/Bali, Sapporo-Chitose,[43]
Asiana Airlines	Seoul–Incheon
Austrian Airlines	Vienna
Bangkok Airways	Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Da Nang, Dhaka, Ko Samui, Krabi, Lampang, Luang Prabang, Malé, Mandalay, Mumbai, Naypyidaw, Phnom Penh, Phuket, Siem Reap, Sukhothai, Trat, Vientiane, Yangon
Beijing Capital Airlines	Guiyang, Xi'an, Zhanjiang[44]
Biman Bangladesh Airlines	Dhaka
Bhutan Airlines	Gaya ,[45] Kolkata, Thimphu/Paro
British Airways	London–Heathrow
Cambodia Angkor Air	Phnom Penh, Siem Reap
Cathay Pacific	Hong Kong, Singapore
Cebu Pacific	Manila
China Airlines	Kaohsiung, Taipei–Taoyuan
China Eastern Airlines	Chengdu, Kunming, Lanzhou, Nanchang, Nanjing, Ningbo, Qingdao, Shanghai–Pudong, Wenzhou, Wuhan, Wuxi, Taiyuan, Xi'an, Xining, Yinchuan Seasonal: Beijing–Capital,[46] Hangzhou, Hefei
China Southern Airlines	Changsha, Guangzhou, Guilin, Jieyang, Lanzhou,[47] Nanning, Shenzhen, Urumqi, Wuhan, Zhengzhou
Chongqing Airlines	Chongqing
Condor	Seasonal: Frankfurt
Druk Air	Bagdogra, Dhaka, Guwahati, Thimphu/Paro
Eastar Jet	Jeju,[48] Seoul–Incheon
EgyptAir	Cairo, Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta,[49] Kuala Lumpur–International
El Al	Tel Aviv–Ben Gurion
Emirates	Auckland, Dubai-International, Hong Kong, Sydney
Ethiopian Airlines	Addis Ababa, Kuala Lumpur–International (ends 31 May 2017),[50] Manila
Etihad Airways	Abu Dhabi
Eurowings operated by SunExpress Deutschland	Cologne/Bonn
EVA Air	Amsterdam, London–Heathrow, Taipei–Taoyuan, Vienna
Finnair	Helsinki
flydubai	Dubai-International [51]
Garuda Indonesia	Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta, Mumbai (begins 12 December 2016) [52]
Gulf Air	Bahrain
Hainan Airlines	Beijing–Capital, Haikou, Nanning
Hong Kong Airlines	Hong Kong
IndiGo	Kolkata
Intira Airlines	Chongqing, Seoul–Incheon
Japan Airlines	Nagoya–Centrair, Osaka–Kansai, Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita
Jeju Air	Busan, Seoul–Incheon
Jet Airways	Delhi, Mumbai
Jet Asia Airways	Tokyo–Narita
Jetstar Airways	Melbourne
Jetstar Asia Airways	Singapore
Jetstar Pacific Airlines	Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City
Jin Air	Seoul–Incheon
Juneyao Airlines	Shanghai–Pudong
Kenya Airways	Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Nairobi–Jomo Kenyatta
KLM	Amsterdam
Korean Air	Busan, Seoul–Incheon
Kuwait Airways	Kuwait
Lao Airlines	Luang Prabang, Savannakhet, Vientiane
LOT Polish Airlines	Seasonal Charter: Warsaw–Chopin
Lucky Air	Kunming
Lufthansa	Frankfurt
Mahan Air	Tehran–Imam Khomeini
Malaysia Airlines	Kuala Lumpur–International
Myanmar Airways International	Mandalay, Yangon
Myanmar National Airlines	Mandalay, Yangon
Nepal Airlines	Kathmandu
Nordwind Airlines	Seasonal Charter: Arkhangelsk,[53] Irkutsk, Kazan, Kemerovo, Khabarovsk, Krasnoyarsk–Yemelyanovo, Mineralnye Vody, Nizhnevartovsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Perm, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Rostov-on-Don, Samara, St. Petersburg, Surgut, Tomsk, Ufa, Ulan–Ude, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk
Norwegian Air Shuttle	Copenhagen, Oslo–Gardermoen, Stockholm–Arlanda
Okay Airways	Tianjin, Xi'an
Oman Air	Muscat
Orient Thai Airlines	Hong Kong
Philippine Airlines	Manila
Plus Ultra Líneas Aéreas	Seasonal: Madrid
Qantas	Sydney
Qatar Airways	Doha, Hanoi
Regent Airways	Chittagong, Dhaka
Royal Brunei Airlines	Bandar Seri Begawan
Royal Jordanian	Amman–Queen Alia, Guangzhou (ends 9 January 2017),[54] Hong Kong
S7 Airlines	Irkutsk Seasonal: Krasnoyarsk–Yemelyanovo,[55] Novosibirsk,[56] Vladivostok[57]
Shaheen Air	Karachi, Lahore[58]
Shandong Airlines	Jinan, Qingdao, Xiamen
Shanghai Airlines	Beijing-Capital,[59] Chongqing, Shanghai–Pudong
Shenzhen Airlines	Fuzhou, Jieyang, Quanzhou,[60] Shenzhen, Xi'an, Wuxi Seasonal: Guangzhou[61]
Sichuan Airlines	Chengdu, Haikou,[62] Sanya
Singapore Airlines	Singapore
SpiceJet	Chennai, Kolkata
Spring Airlines	Beihai,[63] Changchun,[63] Changzhou,[64] Chengdu,[65] Dalian,[64] Fuzhou, Harbin,[63] Hangzhou, Hohhot ,[66] Jinan,[64] Lanzhou,[67] Luoyang, Nanchang, Ningbo,[64] Shanghai–Pudong, Shijiazhuang, Yangzhou, Yinchuan,[67] Zunyi [66]
SriLankan Airlines	Colombo, Guangzhou, Hong Kong
Swiss International Air Lines	Zürich
Thai Airways International	Auckland, Bangalore, Beijing–Capital, Brisbane, Brussels, Busan, Chengdu, Chennai, Chiang Mai, Colombo, Copenhagen, Delhi, Dhaka, Denpasar/Bali, Dubai–International, Frankfurt, Fukuoka, Guangzhou, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Hyderabad, Islamabad, Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta, Karachi, Kathmandu, Koh Samui, Kolkata, Krabi, Kuala Lumpur–International, Kunming, Lahore, London–Heathrow, Manila, Melbourne, Milan–Malpensa, Moscow–Domodedovo (resumes 15 December 2016),[68][69] Mumbai, Munich, Muscat, Nagoya–Centrair, Osaka–Kansai, Oslo–Gardermoen, Paris–Charles de Gaulle, Perth, Phnom Penh, Phuket, Rome–Fiumicino , Sapporo–Chitose, Seoul–Incheon, Shanghai–Pudong, Singapore, Stockholm–Arlanda, Sydney, Taipei–Taoyuan, Tehran-Imam Khomeini, Tokyo–Haneda, Tokyo–Narita, Vientiane, Xiamen, Yangon, Zürich Seasonal: Sendai
Thai Airways operated by Thai Smile	Ahmedabad ,[70] Changsha, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Chongqing, Gaya,[71] Da Nang (begins 16 January 2017),[72] Hat Yai, Jaipur ,[71] Khon Kaen, Krabi, Lucknow (begins 17 December 2016),[73] Narathiwat, Penang,[74] Phnom Penh ,[75] Phuket, Siem Reap, Surat Thani, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, Varanasi ,[71] Yangon
Thai Vietjet Air	Chiang Mai,[76] Hai Phong ,[77] Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City,[77] Phuket[76] Seasonal: Gaya
Tigerair	Singapore
Turkish Airlines	Istanbul–Atatürk
Turkmenistan Airlines	Ashgabat
T'way Airlines	Seoul–Incheon
Ukraine International Airlines	Kiev–Boryspil
Ural Airlines	Beijing–Capital,[78] Changchun,[79][80] Harbin, Khabarovsk,[79] Yekaterinburg Seasonal: Vladivostok (begins 21 December 2016)[80]
Uzbekistan Airways	Tashkent
VietJet Air	Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam Airlines	Da Nang, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City
XiamenAir	Fuzhou, Hangzhou, Quanzhou, Xiamen

Cargo

Airlines	Destinations
Air Hong Kong	Hong Kong, Penang
ANA Cargo	Osaka–Kansai, Singapore, Taipei–Taoyuan, Tokyo–Narita
Asiana Cargo	Seoul–Incheon
Cardig Air	Hong Kong, Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta, Singapore
Cargolux	Baku, Luxembourg, Shanghai-Pudong, Xiamen
Cathay Pacific Cargo	Hong Kong, Penang, Singapore
China Airlines Cargo	Abu Dhabi, Chengdu, Luxembourg, Taipei–Taoyuan
China Cargo Airlines	Shanghai–Pudong
DHL Aviation operated by AeroLogic[81]	Leipzig/Halle
EVA Air Cargo[82]	Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta, Penang, Singapore, Taipei–Taoyuan
FedEx Express	Guangzhou,Penang
K-Mile Air	Ho Chi Minh City, Singapore, Jakarta-Soekarno-Hatta
Korean Air Cargo	Seoul–Incheon, Singapore, Chennai
Lufthansa Cargo	Frankfurt, Mumbai, Sharjah
Martinair[83]	Amsterdam, Muscat, Sharjah
MASKargo	Kuala Lumpur–International
Nippon Cargo Airlines	Singapore, Tokyo–Narita
Singapore Airlines Cargo	Shanghai–Pudong, Singapore
Tri-MG Intra Asia Airlines	Ho Chi Minh City, Phnom Penh
Turkish Airlines Cargo[84]	Almaty, Delhi, Istanbul–Atatürk, Tashkent, Lahore, Islamabad
ULS Airlines Cargo	Istanbul–Atatürk
UPS Airlines	Cologne/Bonn, Mumbai
Yanda Airlines	Coimbatore, Delhi, Pune, Seoul–Incheon, Shanghai–Pudong, Tokyo–Narita
Yangtze River Express	Shanghai–Pudong

Traffic and statistics

Air France Airbus A340-313X takeoff from Suvarnabhumi Airport with an Emirates Boeing 777-300ER and a KLM Boeing 747-400 in the background.

EI-ETJ, a Kogalymavia Airbus A321 take off at Suvarnabhumi Airport, August 2014. This aircraft would be destroyed later in October 2015.

A Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300ER on approach to Suvarnabhumi Airport in 2012.

Thai Airways International Boeing 747-400 with Star Alliance livery at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Thai Smile Airbus A320 parking at Gate A3, Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Busiest international routes

Busiest international routes to and from Suvarnabhumi Airport (2015)^[85]

Rank	Airport	Passengers handled 2015	% Change 2014/15
1	Hong Kong	4,093,932	35.5
2	Singapore	2,867,911	9.8
3	Seoul-Incheon	2,097,635	10
4	Dubai-International	1,622,093	16.8
5	Shanghai-Pudong	1,410,767	46.6
6	Taipei-Taoyuan	1,203,211	8.1
7	Tokyo-Narita	1,147,888	11.0
8	Tokyo-Haneda	1,029,658	26
9	Ho Chi Minh City	1,010,569	43.5
10	Guangzhou	934,901	24.3

Busiest domestic routes

Busiest domestic routes to and from Suvarnabhumi Airport (2015)

Rank	Airport	Passengers handled 2014	% Change 2014/15	Passengers Handled 2015
1	Phuket	2,359,875	6.6	2,516,192
2	Chiang Mai	1,648,208	4.7	1,726,487
3	Samui	1,452,926	4.5	1,517,985
4	Krabi	608,428	2.3	622,129
5	Hatyai	409,112	17.0	478,613
6	Chiang Rai	406,629	13.3	460,570
7	Udon Thani	420,974	2.4	430,918
8	Khon Kaen	416,706	33.6	276,571
9	Ubon Ratchathani	163,275	33.3	214,429
10	Surathani	148,428	1.2	146,719

Traffic by calendar year

Suvarnabhumi accounted for the largest share of air traffic at Thailand's airports in 2015, handling 52.9 million passengers, up by nearly 14 percent from the previous year despite its passenger capacity of only 45 million a year. International passengers passing through Suvarnabhumi grew 15.9 percent to 44.2 million, while domestic volume edged up 4.87 percent to 8.68 million. Aircraft movements showed a 9.50 percent increase to 317,066, consisting of 247,584 international (up 11 percent) and 69,482 domestic (up 4.41 percent).^[86]

	Passengers	Change from previous year	Movements	Cargo (tons)
2008	38,603,490	–	–	1,173,084
2009	40,500,224	04.9%	–	1,045,194
2010	42,784,967	05.6%	–	1,310,146
2011	47,910,744	012.0%	299,566	–
2012*	53,002,328	010.6%	312,493	–
2013	51,363,451	011.92%	288,004	1,236,223
2014	46,423,352	09.62%	289,568	1,234,176
2015	52,902,110	013.96%	317,066	1,230,563
Source: Airports Council International[87] Note : * In 2012, the government enjoined all low-cost airlines to move their hubs to DMK in October

Ground transportation

Departure drop off curb

Taxis stand is located outside the arrival hall on the same level

Airport Rail Link

The 30 billion baht Suvarnabhumi Airport Link was opened on 23 August 2010,^[88] after multiple delays. The Airport Rail Link (ARL) is operated by SRTET, a subsidiary company of the State Railway of Thailand. The standard gauge line is 28.6 kilometers long and is elevated for most its length, running mostly above existing regional railway lines and parallel to Motorway 7 and Si Rat Expressway. There is a short at-grade/underground segment as the line approaches the passenger terminal building of Suvarnabhumi Airport.

The ARL hours of service are 06.00 to 24.00.^[89] The ARL has two interchange stations, namely Phaya Thai (changing for BTS Green Line services) and Makkasan (linking Phetchaburi station of the MRT Blue Line). In the future, the ARL will complement the SRT Red Line commuter service, which comprises two-meter gauge, dual-track lines. The ARL may also be extended from Phaya Thai to Don Mueang via Bang Sue, given that the old Don Mueang International Airport has now been reopened for civil aviation under a dual-airport policy.

Regional train

Meanwhile, SRT provides a suburban commuter train service between Lad Krabang (the nearest station to Suvarnabhumi on the East line, one station from the airport by Airport Rail Link) and the northern suburban city of Rangsit via downtown Bangkok and the old Don Mueang Airport. The train also connects with BTS and MRT at Phaya Thai and Phetchaburi stations respectively. A shuttle bus service linking the airport with Hua Takhe railway station is provided by BMTA. The train service is currently not as popular as the bus service because it requires a shuttle bus connection. The service will be stopped when the Airport Express Link is completed.

Bus

A free bus service connecting Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Mueang Airport operates from 05.00 until midnight. Three air-conditioned city bus routes are operated by Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) serve the airport's dedicated bus terminal

Car

The airport has five main access routes. Among these the most convenient route is via the Bangkok Chon Buri Motorway (Motorway 7). Another main airport entrance is in Samut Prakan Province via the expressway from Bang Na to Bang Pakong.

The airport has provided five entrance routes. The main route is via the motorway in the north of Bangkok, directly connecting Bangkok's downtown and Chonburi Province, the industrial and harbor city in eastern Thailand. However, another main airport entrance is in Samut Prakan Province, connecting an elevated highway in the south of Bangkok from Bang Na to Bang Pakong.

Sky Lane

Sky Lane at Suvarnabhumi Airport

In December 2015, the airport opened Sky Lane (Thai: สกายเลน), a bicycle lane around its perimeter. The cyclists can bring their bicycles and bike here for free. The entrance to Sky Lane is in the northeastern corner of the airport area. The Sky Lane is one direction track made only for bicycles without any intersection or traffic light, so the cyclist can be ensure that users will not get bothered by any vehicle. The Sky Lane takes 23.5 km of distance, making it the longest in Asia,^[90] with restrooms and light posts along the pathway. The entrance gate is open from 06:00 to 19:00.

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External links

Media related to Suvarnabhumi International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
Suvarnabhumi Airport travel guide from Wikivoyage

• Suvarnabhumi Airport, Official site
• Free Zone by Suvarnabhumi Airport Website
• Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited and the page of the Suvarnabhumi Airport
• Suvarnabhumi Airport Project information from Airport Technology
• Current weather for VTBS at NOAA/NWS