The Transport Ministry has ordered the Department of Airports (DoA) to increase measures to support travellers after the number of passengers increased by more than 14% during the New Year.
The Deputy Minister of Transport, Manaporn Charoensri, said on Tuesday the DoA has reported the number of passengers between Dec 27 and Jan 2 amounted to 319,275 people, or up 14.12% from the same period last year.
The DoA oversees 26 airports, which mostly operate domestic flights to Krabi, Khon Kaen and Lampang airports. Six major international gateways including Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang and Phuket airports are overseen by Airports of Thailand (AoT).
Ms Manaporn said the provision of public transport from the airports to the cities or tourist attractions was smooth. Passengers were satisfied with the services, including the "Living Airports" project including improving services, having designated areas for selling local products and integrating local heritage into the airport environment, she added.
Therefore, the ministry ordered the DoA to add more measures to further assist passengers and ensure their safety.
Ms Manaporn said the DoA will accelerate the installation of an explosives detection system (EDS), a machine that automatically screens checked baggage for explosives, to all airports under the department.
She said the system has already been implemented at 22 airports. The DoA will also implement an automatic check-in system to make checking-in faster. The department will increase the number of flights per day to facilitate higher demand.
Danai Raungsorn, DoA director-general, said Krabi Airport handled the most passengers during the New Year with 72,620, followed by Udon Thani Airport (41,785), Khon Kaen Airport (33,562), Ubon Ratchathani Airport (31,048), and Surat Thani Airport (29,779).
Krabi Airport saw the most commercial flights with 477, followed by Udon Thani Airport (268), Ubon Ratchathani and Khon Kaen airports (202 each), Surat Thani Airport (192), and Nakhon Si Thammarat Airport (188).