PHUKET: A woman is taking charge of Phuket International Airport as the holiday island and its most essential facility make important changes for Thailand's key holiday destination.
From Wednesday, Monrudee Ketphan will be promoted from her present position as Director of International Affairs at Airports of Thailand to become Director of Phuket's most important piece of tourism infrastructure.
The present Airport Director and General Manager, Wing Commander Prathuang Somkhom, is taking early retirement tomorrow.
The wing commander oversaw an amazing burst of activity on Phuket that drove up the number of passengers arriving and departing at Phuket every month from 2009 for 60 months straight.
His predecessor, Wing Commander Wicha Nurnlop, dealt with the three-day invasion of Phuket International Airport by supporters of the People's Alliance for Democracy.
Khun Wicha won the Phuketwan Phuket Person of the Year Award 2008 for the way he dealt with the crisis, then announced the five billion baht airport expansion.
The rebirth of Phuket International Airport has been a long time coming.
It is now Khun Monrudee who is likely to oversee the completion of the new international terminal and the delayed opening of an enhanced airport that will have an official capacity of 12.5 million arrivals and departures.
With the number of arrivals and departures exceeding Phuket's capacity, Khun Monrudee will be wise if she heeds the words of the Transport Minister, Air Chief Marshal Prajin Jantong.
He told Phuketwan at the weekend that Phuket must preserve a balance between its increasing popularity and the need to sustain the natural beauty of the Andaman region.
If the minister's advice is heeded, Khun Monrudee will ask the residents of Phuket what they think before trying to find clever ways to encourage more charter flights from obscure Chinese cities.
A race to add tourists without considering the outcome is a race to the bottom. Phuket deserves thoughtful planning and the involvement of all stakeholders.
The AoT has treated Phuket and the needs and aspirations of its residents more seriously since it became plain that the island's airport taxi drivers bullying of the airport management was against the best interest of tourism and Thailand.
It's to be hoped that Khun Monrudee will oversee the continued introduction of meter taxis to replace the previous system that benefited only the set-fare taxi drivers. A reduction in fares to match those of Bangkok is still required.
Khun Monrudee is not the first woman to take charge of Phuket International Airport. That honor fell to Duangjai Korndee, who was acting director briefly in 2011 while Wing Commander Prathuang was taking a break.
From Wednesday, Monrudee Ketphan will be promoted from her present position as Director of International Affairs at Airports of Thailand to become Director of Phuket's most important piece of tourism infrastructure.
The present Airport Director and General Manager, Wing Commander Prathuang Somkhom, is taking early retirement tomorrow.
The wing commander oversaw an amazing burst of activity on Phuket that drove up the number of passengers arriving and departing at Phuket every month from 2009 for 60 months straight.
His predecessor, Wing Commander Wicha Nurnlop, dealt with the three-day invasion of Phuket International Airport by supporters of the People's Alliance for Democracy.
Khun Wicha won the Phuketwan Phuket Person of the Year Award 2008 for the way he dealt with the crisis, then announced the five billion baht airport expansion.
The rebirth of Phuket International Airport has been a long time coming.
It is now Khun Monrudee who is likely to oversee the completion of the new international terminal and the delayed opening of an enhanced airport that will have an official capacity of 12.5 million arrivals and departures.
With the number of arrivals and departures exceeding Phuket's capacity, Khun Monrudee will be wise if she heeds the words of the Transport Minister, Air Chief Marshal Prajin Jantong.
He told Phuketwan at the weekend that Phuket must preserve a balance between its increasing popularity and the need to sustain the natural beauty of the Andaman region.
If the minister's advice is heeded, Khun Monrudee will ask the residents of Phuket what they think before trying to find clever ways to encourage more charter flights from obscure Chinese cities.
A race to add tourists without considering the outcome is a race to the bottom. Phuket deserves thoughtful planning and the involvement of all stakeholders.
The AoT has treated Phuket and the needs and aspirations of its residents more seriously since it became plain that the island's airport taxi drivers bullying of the airport management was against the best interest of tourism and Thailand.
It's to be hoped that Khun Monrudee will oversee the continued introduction of meter taxis to replace the previous system that benefited only the set-fare taxi drivers. A reduction in fares to match those of Bangkok is still required.
Khun Monrudee is not the first woman to take charge of Phuket International Airport. That honor fell to Duangjai Korndee, who was acting director briefly in 2011 while Wing Commander Prathuang was taking a break.
Snake queues for check in and immigration, please.
Most important, though, would be stopping the immigration scams. Disgraceful that they have been permitted and tolerated for so long.
Posted by john on September 29, 2014 19:40