Krabi International Airport

Krabi International Airport

ท่าอากาศยานนานาชาติกระบี่
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorDepartment of Airports
ServesKrabi
LocationNuea Khlong subdistrict, Nuea Khlong, Krabi, Thailand
Opened10 July 1999; 25 years ago (1999-07-10)
Operating base forThai AirAsia
Elevation AMSL82 ft / 25 m
Coordinates08°06′03″N 098°59′05″E / 8.10083°N 98.98472°E / 8.10083; 98.98472
Maps
Map
KBV/VTSG is located in Thailand
KBV/VTSG
KBV/VTSG
Location of Krabi Airport Thailand
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
14/32 9,850 3,002 Asphalt
Statistics (2023)
Total passengers2,309,797 Increase62.88%
International passengers483,174 Increase244.39%
Domestic passengers1,826,623 Increase42.96%
Aircraft movements16,392 Increase57.57%
Freight (tonnes)363.415 Increase8.55%

Krabi International Airport[1] (IATA: KBV, ICAO: VTSG) is in Nuea Khlong subdistrict, Nuea Khlong district, Krabi province in southern Thailand. It is about 7 kilometres (4 mi) east of downtown Krabi. The airport opened in 1999.[2]: 18  In 2017, the airport handled over 4.3 million passengers.[3] The terminal is designed for three million passengers, a number that has already been exceeded, and expansion will push its capacity to over 8 million.[4]

Airport operations

Departures area
A Thai Airways International Airbus A300-600R during deplaning operations at Krabi International Airport, 2011

On 10 February 2016, the Krabi Airport terminal was plunged into darkness for over six hours (09:00–15:30) due to an electrical power outage. The Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) had notified Krabi Airport two days in advance that it would shut down power in the area for maintenance. Airport authorities activated back-up generators, but they did not work. Krabi's airport director stated after the event that management would rent generators in the future to prevent blackouts from happening. With no power for their computers, immigration officials were unable to access immigration databases and were forced to write down the details of 2,000 passengers for later vetting. The deputy national police chief in charge of security, Pol. Col. Srivara Ransibrahmanakul, assured the public that a follow-up check showed that no blacklisted people were allowed into the country during the incident.[5]

Expansion

In 2018, the airport was allocated 6.6 billion baht to build a third terminal, renovate the existing two terminals and car park, and expand aircraft parking bays and associated electrical power infrastructure.[6] In 2019, the Department of Airports announced a project to double the airport's capacity to eight million passengers per year.[7] The airport will no longer be expanded after its final phase of expansion due to lack of space and the city's expansion, and will not be able to cope with the future traffic. A new international airport is proposed to be built in Phang Nga province, which is expected to be completed by 2025, and will serve as an alternative to Krabi airport.[8][9]

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
AirAsia Kuala Lumpur–International
Bangkok Airways Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi, Koh Samui
Batik Air Malaysia Kuala Lumpur–International[10]
Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi (begins 9 October 2025)[11]
flydubai Dubai–International[12]
Jetstar Asia Singapore[13]
Neos Seasonal charter: Prague (from 7 January 2025)[14]
Nok Air Bangkok–Don Mueang[15]
Sichuan Airlines Chengdu–Tianfu, Chongqing
Scoot Singapore
Thai AirAsia Bangkok–Don Mueang, Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi, Chiang Mai
Thai Airways International Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi
Thai Lion Air Bangkok–Don Mueang
Thai VietJet Air Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi[16]
TUI fly Nordic Seasonal charter: Oslo, Copenhagen, Gothenburg

Statistics

Krabi International Airport received 2.3 million passengers in 2023, which makes it the sixth busiest airport in the country.

Year Total
2012 1,190,115
2013 1,668,250
2014 2,700,095
2015 3,689,672
2016 4,079,564
2017 4,339,599
2018 4,193,099
2019 3,658,131
2020 1,318,646
2021 405,432
2022 1,418,052
2023 2,309,797

See also

References

  1. ^ "กรมการบินพลเรือน". Archived from the original on 17 July 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2015.
  2. ^ World Wildlife Fund Greater Mekong Program (WWF-GMP); South East Asian-Global Change System for Analysis, Research and Training organisation (SEA-START) (December 2008). Climate Change Impacts in Krabi Province, Thailand. A study of environmental, social, and economic challenges (PDF). Retrieved 4 October 2016.
  3. ^ "Krabi Airport: All Traffic for the Year 2015" (PDF). Department of Civil Aviation (DCA). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  4. ^ Mackey, Michael. "Krabi airport to expand, ease Phuket congestion". TTG Asia. Archived from the original on 21 April 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
  5. ^ "Power crash a major flaw". Bangkok Post. 13 February 2016. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  6. ^ "Krabi airport upgrade taking off". Bangkok Post. 18 May 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  7. ^ Thodsapol, Hongtong (6 August 2019). "Three airports to be upgraded". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 6 August 2019.
  8. ^ "Phang Nga - Andaman International Airport New Airport Profile | CAPA". centreforaviation.com. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  9. ^ "» New airport planned for Phangnga to serve southern tourism". thaiembdc.org. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  10. ^ "NBATIK AIR MALAYSIA EXPANDS THAILAND NETWORK FROM SEP 2024". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  11. ^ "Etihad 2025 Network Expansion". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  12. ^ "Flydubai grows its network to 113 destinations in 53 countries".
  13. ^ "Jetstar Asia Announces Two Exciting Direct Routes to Krabi and Clark". Jetstar Airways Pty Ltd. 5 March 2024.
  14. ^ "Neos Adds Prague – Krabi in 1Q25". 25 September 2024.
  15. ^ "Nok Air Resumes Bangkok – Krabi Service From August 2024". Aeroroutes. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  16. ^ Thai Vietjet Air begin seasonal service between Bangkok and Krabi

Media related to Krabi Airport at Wikimedia Commons