AoT plans to boost Suvarnabhumi Airport into world’s top 50
Airports of Thailand (AoT) disclosed plans to elevate Suvarnabhumi International Airport into the league of the world’s top 50 airports within a year and subsequently to the top 20 by 2028. This announcement was made by AoT Director Kirati Kijmanawat.
The director shared that Suvarnabhumi International Airport currently ranks 58th in Skytrax’s World’s Best Airport Rankings for 2024, a significant improvement from its 68th position the previous year. This leap in ranking is attributed to the enhancement in services and the inauguration of satellite terminal 1 (SAT-1), which bolstered the airport’s passenger handling capacity.
In his statement, Kirati spoke about AoT’s significant strides in streamlining passenger screening procedures and expediting immigration processes. He revealed that 200 additional officers had been inducted into the immigration police’s workforce at Suvarnabhumi International Airport.
Furthermore, he unveiled AoT’s initiative to install 80 auto gates at immigration control by August and incorporate CT scanning technology into luggage checks.
Within a year, approximately 50% of the airport’s existing luggage scanners are projected to be substituted by CT scanners, allowing passengers to carry liquids, including beverages, onboard. Kirati highlighted the ongoing enhancement of Suvarnabhumi International Airport’s services over the past year, signalling a positive shift in passenger screening times.
The average time a passenger spends in the screening process at the airport has been reduced from a maximum of 50 minutes to 37 minutes, undercutting the global standard of 45 minutes. However, the government has set an ambitious target to further reduce this time to 30 minutes, reported Bangkok Post.
Addressing the issue of overcrowding at the airline check-in counters, which is currently a significant inconvenience for passengers, travellers and tourists at Suvarnabhumi, Kirati revealed that AoT is expediting its East Expansion project. This project is set to add over 60,000 square metres of passenger area to alleviate congestion in the airport, with the expanded space expected to be operational by 2028.
