THAILAND’S Department of Civil Aviation will extend Krabi Airport’s operating hours on October 1 to keep the facility running 24 hours a day.
The airport presently operates from 06.00 to 21.00, but cost considerations have limited the measure to the upcoming peak tourism season only, which lasts until March 2014, according to The Bangkok Post.
The change in opening hours is meant to deal with the spike in passenger traffic through Krabi during the high season, with most arrivals having been diverted to Krabi to ease the overcongestion at Phuket airport.
Passenger arrivals at Krabi Airport are expected to double during this period for a total of 1.7 million travellers, compared to 800,000 the year before, said the report.
Despite having built to handle 6.5 million passengers annually, traffic volume at Phuket International Airport is expected to hit 10.5 million in 2013.
Airports of Thailand, which operates the facility, last week endorsed the construction of a temporary terminal as a coping measure before Phuket airport’s main expansion wraps up in 2015 (TTG Asia e-Daily, August 6, 2013).
