Domestic air travel shrinks in 2021
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published : 10 Jan 2021 at 06:00
30 Passengers are seen at Don Mueang airport on May 2, 2020, after domestic flights resume at Don Mueang airport. (Photo by Pornprom Satrabhaya)
The recent Covid-19 outbreak has seen domestic air travel drop by 60% since the start of the year, says the Department of Airports (DoA).
The figures were drawn from 20 airports supervised by the DoA nationwide, according to Apirat Chaiwongnoi, acting director-general of the department.
Domestic passengers passing through the 20 airports also plunged from an average 30,000 a day before the New Year to 12,000, he said.
The number of aircraft in the sky also fell.
Airport transfers hit turbulence
6 Buriram airport is a new inclusion in the Airports of Thailand s takeover and upgrade plans. (Photo from Buriram airport Facebook account)
The proposed management transfer of four provincial airports to the Airports of Thailand (AoT) has hit a snag with talks under way to sort out the legal wrangle over the next fortnight, says the Transport Ministry.
Airports in Udon Thani, Krabi, Chumphon and Buri Ram, currently run by the Department of Airports (DoA), will be transferred under the measure.
Chayatham Phromsorn, permanent secretary for transport, said the ministry has been preparing the paperwork for the change, but vital details still need to be ironed out.