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AoT Changes its Mind about 2nd Chiang Mai Airport
7th Nov 2017
It appears that the Airports of Thailand (AoT) the main operator of airports in Thailand has changed its mind about the plan to add a second airport in Chiang Mai. Instead, the planned budget will be slashed and neighboring Chiang Rai and its airport Mae Fa Luang have been selected as the second aviation hub in the north.
The original plan to build a second airport in Chiang Mai began last year and it was expected to be completed by 2030. However, that timeframe should now be cut down by five years to 2025.
It was also planned to operate the second Chiang Mai airport around the clock. However, the last now that the new law in China bans flights from taking off after midnight, the last flight will arrive around 3:00 AM. That means there will be no flights arriving between 4:00 AM and 5:00 AM.
This forced AoT to turn its attention to developing Mae Fa Luang in Chiang Rai. This means that the 6.2 billion baht, 20-year investment plan will now be allocated from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai, a source close to the story said.
According to the source, the plan will be finished in three phases, with the first starting this year and the third ending in 2030. By 2030, the airport in Chiang Rai will be able to handle up to 30 flights per hour.
Additionally, Mae Fa Luang airport has an available area of 4,000 rai, making it a better choice for expansion.
According to the AoT President Nitinai Sirismatthakarn, full details about the switch will be available in about a month from now.
He also said that AoT will also divert three daily flights from China from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai to test the planned around the clock operations and if Mae Fa Luang can handle it.
Mr. Nitinai said:
If the plan to operate the Mae Fa Luang airport in Chiang Rai around the clock proves to be efficient in handling the growing number of passengers from China in the next two years, there will be no need to construct a second airport in Chiang Mai.
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