BANGKOK AS A REGIONAL HUB
Is Bangkok fulfilling its potential as a hub?

Bangkok has long sought regional aviation hub status to put it on par with Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, and the opening of Suvarnabhumi Airport was to have propelled the city towards this goal.

However, the postcoup change in airport policies has some wondering whether Thailand is missing its chance.

"Bangkok continues to have an historic advantage of geographic location, but this is fast eroding because of commercial realities," said Board of Airlines Representatives president, Brian Sinclair-Thompson.

"The incentives given by Singapore and Malaysia currently do not exist in Bangkok.

" He said with aircraft performance improving and excellent airports available in the Middle East such as Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi, Bangkok's attractiveness as a hub is fading fast.

"Soon aircraft will be able to over-fly Bangkok to reach their destinations, as there is no incentive for them to stop.

The country needs to enhance its position to compete with the Middle East as a hub," said Mr Sinclair-Thompson.

Pacific Asia Travel Association director – Strategic Intelligence Centre, John Koldowski said Suvarnabhumi has very strong potential.

"Many airlines would argue that this potential is, as yet, unrealised," he added.

"There is certainly an opinion that work needs to begin on the third runway as soon as possible for Bangkok to remain competitive.

After all, there is a lot of airport expansion activity by the Kingdom's neighbours.

" The regional airport traffic volume chart shows Thailand's popularity lagging behind.

"While the volumes differ widely it is still easy to see that Thailand has the lowest rate of growth, at this point in time, of any other Southeast Asia destination," said Mr Koldowski.

BANGKOK DOMESTIC JUMPING POINT/ TWO AIRPORTS
Industry wants one airport

Less than six months after Suvarnabhumi Airport opened, the government axed the budget to start the phase-two expansion.

With the new airport already running close to its annual capacity of 45 million, airlines would be forced to look to other countries.

Airports of Thailand's (AOT) response was to re-open Don Mueang to relieve Suvarnabhumi of six million passengers on domestic flights.

"A two airport system… can certainly work," said Pacific Asia Travel Association director – Strategic Intelligence Centre, John Koldowski.

"The larger issue in Bangkok appears – for the moment at least – to be one of road connectivity, in moving people from one airport to the other… there is little doubt that most airlines would prefer a one-airport policy.

" With a total of 73% of all passengers wanting to make a connection, according to the Board of Airlines Representatives, it makes for a convincing argument to have the airport under one roof, particularly if there is the luxury of having the land available for expansion.

Tour operators further point to the logistical difficulty of having to ensure transfers between the two airports meet the schedules of domestic carriers operating out of Don Mueang and international carriers operating out of Suvarnabhumi.

GATEWAY TO INDOCHINA
International gateway to the region

OPINION "There is certainly an opinion that work needs to begin on the third runway as soon as possible for Bangkok to remain competitive. After all, there is a lot of airport expansion activity by the Kingdom's neighbours." Pacific Asia Travel Association director - Strategic Intelligence Centre, John Koldowski.

While Thailand continues its struggle to move forward as a regional hub, the country may have to watch its back to maintain its longstanding title as Indochina's gateway.

Board of Airlines Representatives president Brian Sinclair-Thompson sees Vietnam as a threat to Thailand's sub-regional hub status.

"Ho Chi Minh City is currently extending its airport and in the next five to eight years will have the capacity to annually handle 100 million passengers.

Because of this, I think Vietnam is fast gaining a competitive position as an alternative hub," he said.

Mr Sinclair-Thompson is referring to Tan Son Nhat Airport and, according to Airports Council International, its new US$219-million terminal should be completed this year.

This could pose a threat to Suvarnabhumi's role in connecting the growing number of air passengers heading to Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar.

That figure is expected to top 3 million this year, the bulk of who will depart from Bangkok, and demand for flights to these destinations is increasing at over 20% per year.

Eyeing Suvarnabhumi's weaknesses, Ho Chi Minh could easily become a regional aviation hub for flights to Siem Reap and Luang Prabang, not to forget Hanoi.

"This is why we should develop the full potential of Suvarnabhumi," Mr Sinclair-Thompson said.

"We need to increase the number of aircraft movements from the current 71-76 per hour to over 90.

" Mr Sinclair-Thompson said carriers are currently not achieving maximum hub connectivity, which could be detrimental to Thailand's position as Indochina's gateway.

SOUTHERN GATEWAY
Phuket – The ideal jumping-off point to Thailand's south

Phuket expects a record five million-plus visitors this year, as the island resort broadens its appeal as Thailand's gateway to the south.

Bangkok Airways now offers two daily flights between Phuket and Koh Samui, and Nok Air started a weekly service to Hat Yai in May.

Destination Air's launch of its Andaman seaplane service to Krabi, Phi Phi and Koh Lanta further expands Phuket's reach.

The Krabi Airport may be geographically better situated to open the door to land transport, with the "Andaman Triangle" highway providing an alternative for channelling tourists around the province and to Phang Nga or deeper south.

However, its runway length limits aircraft size, and Phuket's airport and the island's well-developed infrastructure are much better suited to welcome the numbers brought by international flights.

Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Phornsiri Manoharn said it was a very positive sign that so many countries had chosen to fly charters into Phuket, especially from some Asian countries, given their initial reluctance to travel to Thailand due to its political situation.

Thai immigration is boosting its force in Phuket in October to handle the expected influx, but adding numbers to arrival charts alone does not give it gateway status.

The rise of the island as a marine hub could facilitate movements to the mainland and other islands.

The growing number of yacht charters from Phuket to other Andaman destinations appears promising, but to cement its position as a true gateway, Phuket needs to forge more links with other southern destinations.

NORTHERN GATEWAY
Chiang Mai drives greater Mekong growth

Chiang Mai has been evolving from a northern Thai hub into a gateway to the entire Mekong sub-region.

Though most domestic airlines fly from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, Thai Airways International (THAI) now operates daily service from the northern capital to Mae Hong Son, and Nok Air offers daily flights from the city to Mae Hong Son, Chiang Rai, Pai and Udon Thani.

At the regional level, THAI flies from Chiang Mai to Luang Prabang, Kunming and Yangon, and further to Chittagong and Tokyo.

Bangkok Airways is in the game with its twice weekly one-way flights to Siem Reap and thrice weekly service to Jinghong, China.

Foreign airlines are also using Chiang Mai.

Air Mandalay operates a weekly flight to Yangon on Sundays, and Lao Airlines has upped its service on the Chiang Mai-Luang Prabang route to daily.

AirAsia now offers a daily service from Kuala Lumpur, Silk Air has boosted its frequency from Singapore to four weekly flights, and Mandarin Airlines offers flights from Taipei.

Aside from new routes and added frequencies, a major development for regional land transportation took place on 21 June, when senior officials from Thailand, China and Laos inked an agreement to build a bridge across the Mekong River from Laos, providing a direct road link to Chiang Mai.

"When this vital bridge is completed, it will be possible for the first time to travel by land directly from Yunnan… through Laos to Thailand, opening up tremendous potential for increased trade, tourism and further integration of the Mekong region," said Asian Development Bank (ADB) vice president Lawrence Greenwood.

According to the ADB, annual tourist arrivals in the Mekong countries more than doubled from 10 million in 1995 to over 22 million in 2006.