Airport Impressions

[katoeylover]

go to Phuket instead then!!!

[Guest]

The worst modern airport in Asia by a long long way...but who the fuck goes to bangkok for the airport?

[Stewart]

go to Phuket instead then!!!

I booked Manila

[rxpharm]

More news about the new airport from The Nation, Jan. 24/07.


SUVARNABHUMI
Nod for airport safety in doubt

Aviation officials reluctant to renew certificate due to multiple concerns. This Friday was supposed to be the day Suvarnabhumi Airport would have received a permanent Aerodrome Certificate for meeting safety requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) - but that is not going to happen.

The interim certificate issued six months ago by the Department of Civilian Aviation (DCA) in response to the former government's rush to open the airport for domestic flights on July 29, will expire tomorrow and officials feel uneasy about extending it.

DCA director-general Chaisak Angsuwan said the lack of certification was likely to affect international confidence in Thailand's brand new airport, but it was impossible for his agency to issue a permanent certificate amid looming problems such as major cracks on the runway, taxiway and tarmac.

"The best we could do is issue another six-month interim certificate to Suvarnabhumi, but I'm not certain if we can do it by this Friday because there are a long list of questions for which we are still awaiting answers from the Airports of Thailand," he said.

Chaisak said his agency needed to see a comprehensive plan of how the cracks - reportedly scattered around some 100,000 square metres of the airport - would be addressed, as well as other unresolved safety issues such as inadequate lighting and airfield signs.

The Thaksin Shinawatra government rushed to officially open Suvarnabhumi in late September amid criticism from both local and international aviation industry that the airport was not ready. The Council for National Security, which ousted Thaksin 10 days before the opening, said it was too late to change the schedule.

These developments potentially set the stage for the airport to be left in a certification "no-man's land" as Thai credibility in regard to ensuring airport safety up to ICAO standards has suffered a major blow.

"The ICAO will soon release a list of uncertified airports in the world and it remains to be seen if Suvarnabhumi will be on the list," a DCA safety official, who asked not to be named, said.

Runway and tarmac cracks, which began appearing at the time of the official opening, seemed to be getting worse, said the safety official, and that made it impossible to certify that Suvarnabhumi met ICAO standards.

One of the key factors that has officials worried is the lack of confidence they have in numbers provided by AOT for certification of the runways' surface strength, known as the pavement classification number (PCN).

As was revealed by The Nation in July, DCA officials were frustrated that their efforts to obtain the data, and analysis that support the reported figure, have failed.

The safety official said the DCA's handling of certification for the new airport would also be a gauge for the state agency's own credibility. Last year the DCA was chosen as one of the first four agencies under an ICAO global campaign initiated in 2003 to evaluate member governments' capacity to conduct airport certifications consistent with ICAO guidelines. The other countries were Canada, Germany and Malaysia.

"The AOT reputation is going down the drain from the way it manages Suvarnabhumi, [and] I don't want to see DCA going down with it. Otherwise, what will be left of Thailand's aviation reputation?" the official said.

However, Suvarnabhumi Airport director Somchai Sawasdeepon said the aerodrome certification was not a legal binding issue and the airport could continue to operate without it.

"But the certification is an ICAO requirement and we would like to comply with it, that's why we applied to the DCA to issue us one," he said.

"We have addressed the concerns raised by DCA and will submit our answers tomorrow or the next day. An interim certificate is fine because there are many other airports in the world that have also still not been certified."

Nantiya Tangwisutijit

The Nation


Sounds like the Department of Civil Aviation will not issue a permanent certificate for the new airport - and may delay renewing the temporary one until some specific questions are answered.

TIT!

[rxpharm]

Another article from The Nation about the investigation into the new airport problems, Jan. 24/07.

Probe into airport cracks

A Transport Ministry committee was yesterday set up to look into what has caused the cracks on several taxiways at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Transport Minister Admiral Theera Haocharoen said the panel would determine whether the cracks had been caused by poor construction and the use of bad materials; poor management of underwater flooding, or bad design of the taxiways.

The panel will be assisted by members from the Engineering Institute of Thailand Under HM The King's Patronage (EIT).

He ruled out the possibility of the airport being closed temporarily to sort out the cracks, but said: "If the cracks jeopardise aviation operations, something may need to be done further."

The retired admiral added: "If the board of directors of the Airports of Thailand [AOT] does not fully respond to the government's concerns [over the cracks], there will be something to reconsider about the appropriateness [of the current board's memberships].

Engineering expert Tortrakool Yommanark, an AOT board member, said the most likely cause of the cracks was bad design, and the actual cause would need to be positively identified and completely corrected, otherwise repair works to existing cracks would mean nothing as they would recur.

A National Legislative Assembly panel investigating corruption scandals surrounding the new airport earlier announced that several cracks were also found in passenger terminal buildings, while a number of unauthorised alterations of the original designs of the airport have also been discovered.

Quoting a contractor's report, the panel said the taxiways and runways with detected cracks or other defects could further develop and include a vast area covering 70,000 square metres.

"The problems have developed very rapidly, given that the report was filed on January 13, after the airport had been opened for only three months," panel member Praphan Khoonmee said.

The panel was also investigating a questionable alteration of the passenger terminal layout that unfairly increased outlet space for duty-free merchandiser Kingpower. - The Nation


TIT!

[Guest]

(Stewart @ Jan. 23 2007,16:46)

go to Phuket instead then!!!

I booked Manila

good for you.bring a lot of cash.

[Guest]

you have to suport the poore philippino people

[katoeylover]

(Stewart @ Jan. 23 2007,22:46)

go to Phuket instead then!!!

I booked Manila

Must have got Andrea's cousins number...

[Stewart]

I booked Manila

Must have got Andrea's cousins number...

She's in Cebu, and won't talk to me because she has a serious bf

[rxpharm]

More news from The Nation, January 25, 2007 re: the cracks. They are not a political scheme to make the former Thaksin gov't look bad and are a serious and real problem.

Flights at Suvarnabhumi Airport delayed as repairs of cracks continue

Many flights to and from Suvarnabhumi Airport were delayed Thursday following closing of some taxiways and runways to repair the cracks.

THAI Flights from Singapore and Hong Kong had to change direction and land at U Tapao airport in Chon Buri province before flying back to Suvarnabhumi Airport as their gas were running out after circling at the airport for long time.

The main reason was because the airport authorities have closed western taxiways and runways of the airport to repair the cracks, making the all coming aircraft to land at the eastern runways. These resulted in the congestion of the aircraft wishing to land.


Thai Airways International said that there were two THAI flights from Singapore and Hong Kong that had to circling at the airport to wait for their turns to land had to fly and land at U-Tapao Airport in Chon Buri as they were running out of gas. They then flew to the new airport to land.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Theera Haocharoen accompanied Gen Saprang Kalayanamitr, the Council for National Security (CNS) secretary in his behalf as board chairman of the Airports of Thailand, to inspect runways and taxi-ways at the new airport.

The inspection covered troubled spots on the taxiways where the surface have either cracked or subsided. The taxiway was closed for repair.

More problems concern the bridges linking boarding gates to aircraft. As some aircraft needed to take detour to avoid the troubled taxiway spots, only 40 of 51 bridges could be used to service passengers, adding to traffic operational headache.

"Some airlines are concerned about safety and they avoided the troubled taxiway areas, although some spots have bee repaired and ready for use," said Theera.

The Nation

Stewart - this explains some of the problems with the late flights.

A second article of same date indicating temporary repairs have been ordered.

Suvarnabhumi Airport to get temporary repairs


Suvarnabhumi Airport will not be closed down, as authorities chose to proceed with temporary repairs on the many cracks in the taxiways and one in the main runway, Transport Minister said Thursday.

Admiral Thira Haocharoen admitted that airport authorities had found 25 cracks in the taxiways at Suvarnabhumi Airport that have made it impossible for airplanes to use 11 of the airport's aero-bridges.

At least one crack has also been found at the head of the airport's 4,000-metre-long runway.

Thira said engineers and technicians were instructed to proceed with temporary repairs for the cracks within the next few weeks.

- The Nation

TIT!

[rxpharm]

More bad news for the new airport - the ICAO representatives in Thailand will not grant a permanent Aerodrome certificate for the new airport and will not extend the temporary one given for its September opening.

As reported by The Nation, January 27, 2007.

SUVARNABHUMI
Airport denied seal of approval

Will continue to operate despite many 'structural, management' faults

Confidence over the safety of Suvarna-bhumi Airport has suffered another major blow, with aviation authorities yesterday refusing to extend its interim Aerodrome Certificate. The certificate, which shows an airport meets international safety requirements, expired on Thursday.

Civil Aviation Department officials said they had received phone calls from international pilots expressing concern after learning about the department's decision to leave Suvarnabhumi in a certification "no man's land".

Department director-general Chaisak Angsuwan said the decision stemmed from multiple structural and management problems at the airport.

Pavement cracks on runways, taxiways and tarmacs are scattered over about 100,000 square metres of the airfield, forcing partial closure for repair work over the past few weeks. The next closure for repair of the eastern runway was planned for four hours early today.

"We also found management problems," Chaisak said. "For example, the aerodrome operation manual that provides instruction for airport maintenance and accidents still contains incorrect information, which could cause confusion for operators, especially in case of emergencies."

However, Chaisak said the lack of an Aerodrome Certificate would not lead to the airport's closure because Suvarnabhumi is operated under a local licence, just like Don Muang and other airports in Thailand.

The Aerodrome Certificate is a recent attempt by the UN International Civil Aviation Organisation to standardise airport operations around the world, but Thailand has not yet issued a law to respond to this new requirement.

While no airport in Thailand has been certified, eight airports in Malaysia have obtained the certificates, as well as two in Singapore, two in the Philippines and one in Hong Kong. Eight in South Korea, one in North Korea and 93 in Japan have also been certified.

Chaisak said the interim certificate issued by his agency to Suvarnabhumi six months ago in response to the rush to open the airport for domestic flights in July, and the official opening in September, had no legal foundation.

"We are updating our legal system for aviation, hopefully this year," he said. "Until then, Airports of Thailand [operator of Suvarnabhumi] has time to improve the airport and we can start the certification process anew."

However, Suvarnabhumi being left in a state of certification "no man's land" has concerned some pilots. A professional Thai pilot told The Nation the lack of certification would affect confidence in the international pilot community about the safety of Thailand's brand-new airport.

"If I were a foreign pilot, how could I trust that I would be given the right instruction when I had to fly in and out of an airport without international recognition?" he said. "And I would be particularly concerned if I had to deal with disruptive weather or other emergencies. I don't know who has to bear responsibility in the event a wrong decision is made."

Nantiya Tangwisutijit

The Nation

TIT!

[Road Runner]

Somehow I don't think the lack of a certificate will reduce the number of passengers passing through Suvarnabhumi.

The 'loss of face' factor should induce the Thai authorities to take some sort of action to sort out the problems and I think that they are unlikely to sweep most of it under the carpet.

Equally I would guess that the majority of international airports in the world are not certificated by the ICAO and of those that are, every one has received some sort of negative feedback.

RR.

[donnnnnny]

Great airport whats all the fuss about?? its not like we are here to see the fucking airport.i found it easy to get around clearly sign posted(check out gatwick!!!!!!!!!!)and easy to get a taxi. the cost of my taxi to the nana area was 190 baht so i tipped him 50 for being honest. the trip was about 25 mins.no real diffeent to don muang as cheers donnnnnny flashing through the airport. also if you dont want to queue for a cab go to departures there aare hundreds dropping people off all the time.

[rxpharm]

The big problem with the new airport has to do with the cracks on the runways and taxiways:



It is obviously going to reduce the safety of take off and landing the planes if the problems cannot be corrected - simply patching does not address the issue as patches have been found to subside or crack again too.

Another recent article from the Nation with two other airlines suggesting using Don Muang to ease the load on the new airport so repairs can be done properly.

Use Don Muang during repairs: 2 airlines

Bangkok Airways and Thai AirAsia have urged the government to move domestic flights back to Don Muang temporarily so that Suvarnabhumi Airport can be partially shut down for repairs to cracked taxiways.

Bangkok Airways CEO Prasert Prasartthong-osoth yesterday said moving domestic flights to Don Muang would allow Airports of Thailand, Suvarnabhumi's operator, to close parts of the new airport for repair without causing problems to air traffic as happened two days ago.

The move would ease the traffic at Suvarnabhumi by 30 per cent, he said. "The old airport can still serve airlines," he added.

His comments followed the air traffic problems on Thursday at Suvarnabhumi when a number of flights were forced to circle around the airport or divert to U-Tapao military airfield, as debris was found on the western runway which was closed for repairs.

Thai Airways International president Apinan Sumaseni said after a board meeting yesterday that if traffic problems continue at Suvarnabhumi, THAI would need to stock more fuel.

Sehapan Chumsai na Ayutthaya, executive vice president for marketing at Nok Air, said that each diversion to U-Tapao cost an airline Bt100,000-Bt200,000 depending on aircraft size.

Transport Minister Theera Haocharoen said on Thursday that the repairs could be carried out without having to move flights to Don Muang.

But Prasert, whose company built airports at Koh Samui, Trat and Sukhothai, suggested that the only way to mend the cracks caused by inferior building materials was to lay new foundations. The reconstruction would take at least 15 to 18 months and cost about Bt50 billion.

He pointed out that since the runways need fixing, the responsible parties might as well fix other problems within the airport too: the severe lack of toilets, lighting, space, conveyor belts and shuttle buses. The malfunctioning online immigration system, which is supposed to link to a global system, has also allowed illegal immigrants to slip in.

"The airport authority should install new facilities, instead of fixing them," he said.

Prasert added that the runway cracks had been caused by the misuse of coarse-grain sand, which failed to absorb water. Expired cement worsened the already fractured surface.

As a result of its premature opening and bargain-quality construction materials, Suvarnabhumi Airport has yet to pass the International Civil Aviation Organisation's safety oversight audit.

"Many airlines have lost faith in the safety of the new airport and have turned to use neighbouring countries' airports. The government should quickly solve this problem before there is a crisis," said Prasert.

Tassapon Bejleveld, CEO of Thai AirAsia, also proposed that the government move all domestic and some international flights back to Don Muang airport to avoid air traffic congestion while repairing the taxiway and runway at Suvarnnabhumi.

Thai AirAsia wants to move all its operations from Suvarnabhumi to Don Muang to reduce its operating costs and make it easier for passengers connecting between its domestic and international flights.

Nok Air and One Two Go have also urged agencies to reopen Don Muang airport as a domestic airport.

Chaisak Angkasuwan, director-general of the Civil Aviation Department, said the department and related bodies - including Airports of Thailand, Aeronautical Radio of Thailand and Thai Airways International - would meet on Monday to reach a conclusion about using Don Muang airport.

TIT!

[donnnnnny]

TIT