AoT OKs short-term Phuket terminal

Source: Bangkok Post, ThailandAug.mini storage 30--The fast-track scheme to build a check-in terminal at Phuket airport to ease heavy congestion at its passenger terminal is scheduled to get off the ground.The board of Airports of Thailand Plc agreed on Wednesday to grant a 155-million-baht contract to Unique Engineering and Construction Plc to carry out construction under a special awarding system that bypassed a lengthy bidding process associated with state enterprise bureaucracy.The state-controlled airport operator used the system to ensure the facility could be installed in time to alleviate congestion this December when air traffic demand peaks.It is meant to serve as a limited short-term solution while the airport's main expansion is finished in 2015. The airport's annual passenger processing capacity will be upgraded to 12.5 million from 6.5 million.AoT said the facility, located on four rai used as a football pitch, will be leased from Aeronautical Radio of Thailand, the navigation seself storagevice provider, for international check-ins, reducing the present terminal's load.Offering a total usable area of 1,320 square metres, the facility will be equipped with 10 check-in counters, complete with baggage storage space, a passenger waiting area, an outdoor resting area, a commercial zone and airline offices.The facility, capable of handling 1,000 passengers per hour, will be situated away from the existing terminal, requiring passengers to be transferred by bus to the main terminal for security and immigration formalities and boarding.Traffic through Phuket airport is expected to reach 10.5 million this year. But by the time Phuket's main expansion is completed, the incremental capacity will be absorbed by the growing traffic, which is projected to grow to at least 12 million in 2015, said AoT executives.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Bangkok Post (Bangkok, Thailand) Visit the Bangkok Post (Bangkok, Thailand) at .bangkokpost.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉