Reports from Bangkok say that despite the slowdown in Thailand’s economy together with political turbulence, the number of flights arriving and departing the country, as well as the number of passengers, are expected to increase in 2007, a senior official of Airports of Thailand (AoT) said on Wednesday.
Kulya Pakakrong, acting president of AoT, said the company has forecast a total of 387,000 flights arriving and departing Thailand in 2007, up 8.2% from 2006.
The number of arriving and departing passengers this year is projected at about 57.5 million, an increase of 8.5% from 2006, she said.
The expected increase in this year’s air traffic is attributed to the sharp rise in low-cost airline flights while the sluggish economy and political problem cause little impact on the airline and tourism businesses, said Mrs. Kulya.
However, the continuing violence in the three southern border provinces – Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat, remains a major obstacle to airline business growth, she added.
Report by The Mole
