Surat Thani International Airport

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Surat Thani International Airport

ท่าอากาศยานสุราษฎร์ธานี
Surat Thani Airport (2022).jpg
Summary
Airport typePublic / Military
Owner Royal Thai Air Force
Operator Department of Airports
Serves Surat Thani
LocationHua Toei, Phunphin, Surat Thani, Thailand
Opened15 April 1981;43 years ago (1981-04-15)
Elevation  AMSL 6.1 m / 20 ft
Coordinates 09°07′57″N99°08′08″E / 9.13250°N 99.13556°E / 9.13250; 99.13556
Website minisite.airports.go.th/suratthani
Maps
Surat Thani International Airport
Thailand adm location map.svg
Airplane silhouette.svg
URT
Location of airport in Thailand
Surat Thani International Airport
Runways
Direction LengthSurface
mft
04/223,0009,843 Asphalt
Helipads
NumberLengthSurface
mft
2582
Statistics (2024)
Total passengers1,342,036 Decrease2.svg0.79%
Aircraft movements9,407 Increase2.svg6.36%
Freight (tonnes)700.53 Increase2.svg6.87%

Surat Thani International Airport( IATA : URT, ICAO : VTSB) is an international airport in Hua Toei subdistrict, Phunphin district, Surat Thani province in Southern Thailand. The airport, 21 kilometres west of downtown Surat Thani, is also home to the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) squadrons. It has a single paved runway and is the tenth-busiest airport in Thailand in terms of passengers, handling more than two million passengers annually.

Contents

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Nok Air Bangkok–Don Mueang
Thai AirAsia Bangkok–Don Mueang, Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi (begins 1 July 2025), [1] Chiang Mai
Thai Lion Air Bangkok–Don Mueang
Charter: Taipei–Taoyuan [2]
Thai VietJet Air Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi

Statistics

Passengers

YearTotal passengersChangeTotal flightsTotal cargo (tonnes)
2001180,6211,5314,646.35
2002163,321Decrease2.svg 9.58%1,5102,472.06
2003162,661Decrease2.svg 0.40%1,5182,070.01
2004202,250Increase2.svg 24.34%1,6291,858.76
2005206,342Increase2.svg 2.02%1,7931,698.92
2006291,094Increase2.svg 41.07%2,8121,412.82
2007359,467Increase2.svg 23.49%3,3161,061.95
2008344,748Decrease2.svg 4.09%2,9041,464.76
2009394,096Increase2.svg 14.31%3,2661,301.99
2010505,776Increase2.svg 28.34%4,4601,152.31
2011595,184Increase2.svg 17.68%5,2511,369.13
2012816,484Increase2.svg 37.18%6,3081,541.00
20131,080,508Increase2.svg 32.34%8,4571,568.07
20141,319,660Increase2.svg 22.13%10,1751,571.29
20151,856,315Increase2.svg 40.67%13,2571,601.26
20162,032,042Increase2.svg 9.47%13,8131,575.77
20172,247,344Increase2.svg 10.60%15,3961,036.80
20182,108,289Decrease2.svg 6.19%14,0001,144.99
20191,864,997Decrease2.svg 11.54%12,340829.87

History

Surat Thani Airport in 2008 Surat thani airport.jpg
Surat Thani Airport in 2008
Surat Thani International Airport in May 2022 Surat Thani Airport (May 2022).jpg
Surat Thani International Airport in May 2022

Donnok airport

Surat Thani Airport's predecessor is known locally as Donnok Airport (Thai : สนามบินดอนนก). It is located in Makham Tia subdistrict, Mueang Surat Thani district, around 3 km (1.9 mi) away from Surat Thani City, and has a single, gravel paved runway, 800 meters in length. [3] Later, the runway was expanded by the Royal Thai Air Force to 1,000 metres, which was still only capable of handling small planes, such as the Douglas DC-3. [3]

The current airport

Due to the original airport's close proximity to Surat Thani, The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) planned a new airport away from the city. A former airfield used in World War II by the military was chosen as the site for the new airport. After the construction site was chosen, a plan for the airfield's development was proposed. However, in 1973, the government suspended the development project and used the funds to support Phuket International Airport's operations instead. [3]

In 1975, many residents in Surat Thani called for the project's reconsideration. The Ministry of Defence and CAAT showed interest in the project and the airfield's development began in 1978. The airport was officially opened on 15 April 1981. It had a single runway, 2,500 metres in length. In 1993, the runway was expanded to support larger commercial flights and military operations. [3]

Future upgrades and developments

The Department of Airports announced a 1.7 billion Baht plan to upgrade the airport. [4] Details of the project are as following:

  1. The airport's apron will be expanded to increase its capacity up to 11 Boeing 737s at a time. [4]
  2. The electrical system and wires will be moved underground.
  3. The airport terminal will be expanded to accommodate up to 3.6 million passengers a year. [5] The car park will also be expanded to handle up to 700 cars at a time. [4]
  4. The runway will be upgraded to increase its strength. [4]
  5. Construction of the new transportation center to handle more passengers. [4]

Military use

As well as being a commercial facility, Surat Thani Airport is an active RTAF base, the home of 4th Air Division/7th Wing Air Combat Command. 701 Squadron, "Shark", flies twelve SAAB JAS-39 C/D Gripen fighter aircraft. 702 Squadron operates two airborne early warning (AEW) and two transport SAAB SF340 airplanes. A further two SF340s are on order. [6] [7]

Accidents and incidents

On 11 December 1998, Thai Airways International Flight 261, an Airbus A310-200 (HS-TIA, Phitsanulok), bound for Surat Thani from Bangkok, was making its third landing attempt in heavy rain when it crashed into a rice paddy about 3 km (1.9 mi) from the airport; 101 of the 146 passengers and crew aboard were killed.

References

  1. ↑ Liu, Jim. "Thai AirAsia 3Q25 Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Domestic Network Expansion". aeroroutes.com. Aeroroutes. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
  2. ↑ "THAI LION AIR APRIL 2024 TAIWAN CHARTERS". AeroRoutes. 28 February 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Surat Thani International Airport (21 November 2013). "ประวัติความเป็นมา" [History] (in Thai). Archived from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "กรมท่าอากาศยาน อัดฉีด 1.7 พันล้านบาท ขยายสนามบินสุราษฎร์ธานี" [Department of Airports injects 1.7 billion baht to expand Surat Thani Airport]. Khaosod Online (in Thai). 18 January 2021. Archived from the original on 7 September 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  5. ↑ Hongtong, Thodsapol (6 August 2019). "Three airports to be upgraded". Bangkok Post.
  6. ↑ "ประวัติกองบิน 7" [History of Wing 7] (in Thai). Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  7. ↑ "กองทัพอากาศจัดงานครบรอบ 20 ปี วันสถาปนา กองบิน 7 วันที่ 15" [The Air Force held a ceremony to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the establishment of Wing 7 on the 15th.]. ryt9.com (in Thai). 7 February 2002. Retrieved 23 September 2023.

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