Samui
Airport
 When
you fly to Samui, your holiday begins the moment you land. That's because
Samui Airport has been created in the mood and style of the island itself,
its low rise palm-thatched roofs and tropical gardens with their lofty
coconut palms blending in perfectly with the exotic surroundings of one
of the most beautiful islands on earth.
 he
Seamless way Samui Airport harmonies with the local environment has been
acknowledged far and wide,and proves that man-made facilities can be attractive
and efficient at the same time.
he excellence
of its disign has been honoured with a number of environmental and awards,including
First Place in the Outstanding Architecture 1998 Competition staged by
the Siam Architects Association under the patronage of His Majesty the
King of Thailand. Samui Airport also won a Board of National Environment
Award in 1989 for Aviation Environmental Protection and Awarenes.
  esigned
by the Habita Company and open in 1989, Samui Airport represents a total
investment of some 800 million baht. It covers an area of 500 rai on the
northern end of Samui Island near Bophut Beach, and is only 20 minutes'
drive from the main beach of Chaweng.
Samui Airport has been a major factor in putting the island on
the international tourist map. It was upgraded to customs airport to allow
international traffic. The airport was thebrainchid of Dr Prasert
Prasarttong-Osoth,President and CEO
of Bangkok Airways,who had the vision and determination to build an airport
on the island as a key element in establishing his airline. To some extent,
economic considerations dictated the design of the airport, but the result
has proved both successful and popular.
  angkok
Airways operates more than 40 flights a day on its Bangkok-Samui,Samui-Phuket,Samui-Pattaya(U-Tapao)
,Samui-Krabi and Samui-Singapore routes. Flying time between Bangkok and
Samui is one hour, while the flights on its Samui-Phuket and Samui-Pattaya
routes is under 45 minutes. In the days before Samui Airport was open,most
visitore would have to travel to the island from Bangkok by rail or bus
to Surat Thani and then by ferry to the island - a journey of 14 hours.
 ith Samui firmly established
as a major tourist destination, Bangkok Airways has plans to meet future
demand for access to the island by extending the runway to 2,100 m. To
achieve this goal, the airline will invest an additional not less than
200 million baht. It will be another important step in the sucessful partnership
between Bangkok Airways and Samui Island. |
