U-Tapao International Airport
U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport ท่าอากาศยานอู่ตะเภา ระยอง–พัทยา | |||||||||||
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Summary | |||||||||||
Airport type | Public / military | ||||||||||
Owner | Royal Thai Navy | ||||||||||
Operator | Department of Airports | ||||||||||
Serves | |||||||||||
Location | Ban Chang district, Rayong province, Thailand | ||||||||||
Opened | 2 June 1966 | ||||||||||
Operating base for | |||||||||||
Elevation AMSL | 13 m / 42 ft | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 12°40′47″N 101°00′18″E / 12.67972°N 101.00500°E | ||||||||||
Website | www | ||||||||||
Maps | |||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||
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Statistics (2018) | |||||||||||
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U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport (IATA: UTP, ICAO: VTBU), also spelled Utapao and U-Taphao, is a joint civil–military public international airport serving the cities of Rayong and Pattaya in Eastern Thailand. It is in the Ban Chang district of Rayong province.[4][5]
It also serves as the U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield, home of the Royal Thai Navy First Air Wing. U-Tapao is the home of a large Thai Airways maintenance facility, servicing that airline's aircraft as well as those of other customers.[6] Due to the blockade of Bangkok's airports by opposition protesters, U-Tapao briefly became the main air gateway to Thailand between 26 November and 5 December 2008. As both of Bangkok's international airports essential to the country's tourist boom are operating beyond capacity as of 2015,[7][8] U-Tapao in particular has been eyed as an alternate international gateway due to its relative proximity to the capital.
Location
[edit]U-Tapao lies approximately 90 miles (140 km) southeast of Bangkok, south of Sukhumvit Road at Km. 189, near Sattahip on the Gulf of Thailand, about a 45-minute drive from Pattaya (Thailand's most popular beach resort).
History
[edit]Vietnam War
[edit]U-Tapao was built by the United States to accommodate B-52 bombers for missions in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia during the Vietnam War.[9] Construction began on 15 October 1965 and was completed on 2 June 1966.[10] U-Tapao was the primary Southeast Asian airfield for USAF B-52 bombers, called "Bee-hasip-sawng" (B-52) by the local Thais.[11] U-Tapao was a front-line base along with the other US bases at Korat, Udon, Ubon, Nakhon Phanom, and Takhli. The USAF B-52s made regular sorties over North Vietnam and North Vietnamese-controlled areas in Laos, carrying an average of 108 500-pound and 750-pound bombs per mission. U-Tapao was a regular stop on Bob Hope's Christmas shows for the troops.[12]
November 2008 protests in Bangkok
[edit]With the temporary closure of Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports in late November 2008 because they had been occupied by anti-government protestors, U-Tapao became for a time Thailand's main supplementary international gateway. Many airlines arranged special flights to and from U-Tapao to ferry international passengers stranded by the closure of the Suvarnabhumi Airport.[13][14][15][16][17] Several governments including Italy, Macau and Spain also sent chartered flights to evacuate residents.[citation needed]
As many as 100,000 passengers were stranded in Thailand until early December. Although its runway can accommodate large aircraft, U-Tapao's terminals are not designed to handle more than a few flights a day. Travellers were subject to many hardships, and as the security was not up-to-date, some US-bound flights were diverted to Japan and their passengers required to go through a supplementary security check before continuing.[15]
Airport expansion
[edit]As Bangkok's two international airports are operating beyond capacity, the government intends to turn U-Tapao into a third major destination for airlines. A new second terminal will increase airport capacity from 800,000 to three million persons per year. Terminal 2 was partially opened in November 2018 and was officially opened in February 2019.[18]
There were also 41 direct flights landing from China weekly.[19] Airport director, Rear Admiral Worapol Tongpricha, said the 620 million baht terminal is the start of a three-year, first-phase development. In the second phase, the government will boost the capacity further to 15 million passengers per year.[20]
In November 2022, the Thai Government approved another expansion plan for U-Tapao, to increase its capacity to 60 million passengers per year. It is planned to add a new runway, taxiways and facilities to increase Pattaya's and Bangkok's air passenger capacity, and also boost connections to the Eastern Economic Corridor.[21]
Concessions
[edit]In late 2018, King Power was awarded a ten-year contract to operate U-Tapao duty-free shops. A partnership between Thai retailer Central Department Store Company (Central Group) and DFS Group will manage retail shops and services, mainly food and beverage, also for 10 years.[22]
Airlines and destinations
[edit]Airlines | Destinations |
---|---|
AirAsia | Kuala Lumpur–International[23] |
Azur Air | Seasonal charter: Irkutsk,[24] Krasnoyarsk-International,[24] Moscow-Vnukovo,[24] Novosibirsk,[24] Samara,[24] Tomsk,[25] Yekaterinburg,[24] Novokuznetsk, Vladivostok, Ufa, Khabarovsk, Barnaul, Blagoveshchensk |
Bangkok Airways | Koh Samui, Phuket |
Flydubai | Dubai–International |
S7 Airlines | Irkutsk (begins 30 March 2025)[26] |
SCAT Airlines | Seasonal charter: Almaty, Astana |
Thai Lion Air | Chiang Mai |
Accidents and incidents
[edit]- On 28 October 1977, a Douglas DC-3 of Vietnam Airlines en route from Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Ho Chi Minh City, to Duong Dong Airport, Phu Quoc, Vietnam, was hijacked and diverted to U-Tapao Air Base to refuel. Two Vietnamese officials on the aircraft were killed in the hijacking.[27]
References
[edit]- ^ "Passenger statistics for 2015–2019" (PDF). U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport (in Thai).
- ^ "Airport information for VTBU". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) Data current as of October 2006. Source: DAFIF. - ^ Airport information for UTP at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
- ^ "U Tapao-Pattaya International Airport" (PDF). U Tapao Airport Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2013.
- ^ "Home". U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ^ "Thai Airways International: Technical Department --- U-Tapao Second Maintenance Center ---". www.thaitechnical.com. Archived from the original on 6 July 2008.
- ^ "New terminal to boost U-Tapao Airport".
- ^ "Don Mueang is world's busiest LCC". The Nation. 15 September 2015.
- ^ Janssen, Peter (6 June 2017). "Military airbase set for commercial take-off in Thailand". Asia Times. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
- ^ "History". U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ Ellis, John. "U-Tapao Air Base" (Historical photos). Cohojohn.tripod.com. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
- ^ "Bob Hope Visit". Thailand Dog Handlers. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
- ^ "ANA International Flight Status". Fli.ana.co.jp.
- ^ "Cathay Pacific". Cathay Pacific.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Latest update on Bangkok, Utapao and Europe flights". EVA Airways. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
- ^ "THAI Operates 34 Special Inbound and Outbound Flights on 2 December 2008". THAI. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
- ^ Page 6, South China Morning Post, 30 November 2008.[not specific enough to verify]
- ^ "Terminal 2 at U-Tapao airport to be fully opened in February". The Nation. 8 November 2018. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
- ^ "Home". utapao.com.
- ^ "U-Tapao airport takes new leap". Bangkok Post. 21 June 2016. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
- ^ Mail, Pattaya (6 November 2022). "Massive expansion approved for U-Tapao-Rayong-Pattaya International Airport". Pattaya Mail. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
- ^ Moodie, Martin (21 November 2018). "King Power wins U-Tapao Airport duty free contract; Central Group/DFS alliance gains duty paid and services". The Moodie Davitt Report. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ^ "AirAsia Resumes Kuala Lumpur – Utapao Service in June 2024". AeroRoutes. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f "AZUR Air Expands Phuket Network in NW23". AeroRoutes. 2 November 2023. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
- ^ "Авиакомпания AZUR air открывает прямые рейсы из Томска в Паттайю". tomskairport.ru. ООО «Аэропорт ТОМСК». Retrieved 23 January 2024.
- ^ Liu, Jim (21 November 2024). "S7 Airlines Files Irkutsk – Utapao Schedule in 2Q25". AeroRoutes. Retrieved 21 November 2024.
- ^ "Hijacking description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
External links
[edit]Media related to U-Tapao International Airport at Wikimedia Commons
- Airport project gets Phumtham review. 2024-08-09. Bangkok Post
- U-Taphao Airport
- Pattaya Airport Guide (passenger information and real time flight arrivals / departures)
- Current weather for VTBU at NOAA/NWS
- Accident history for UTP at Aviation Safety Network