Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport has seen a severe drop in passenger traffic this year, following AirAsia’s move to the Thai capital’s second airport, Don Mueang.
According to the latest data from Airports of Thailand (AoT), Suvarnabhumi recorded 8.8 million passenger movements in the first two months of 2013, down 9.8% year-on-year. Aircraft movements plunged 20.5% to 47,558.
The impact of AirAsia’s departure, along with the move of Nok Air’s flights back to Don Mueang after the 2011-12 floods, was highlighted by a 46.8% slump in domestic traffic to 1.6m passengers. International traffic climbed 6.4% to 7.2m.
By contrast, traffic at Don Mueang jumped to 2.6m passengers, while aircraft movements reached 22,920. The airport was closed in the first two months of 2012 due to the affects of the Bangkok floods, but is now home to Thailand’s two biggest low-cost carriers – Thai AirAsia and Nok Air.
