Decision on airport fate coming soon

[Krung_Thep]

Source: Runway damage not as bad as feared

By Post reporters

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Surayud: Experts must assess situation

Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont said the decision whether trouble-plagued Suvarnabhumi airport will be closed entirely during repairs will be made on Wednesday. Gen Surayud said he would prefer another option _ keeping the airport open and functioning while correcting the problems.

‘‘In my view, we should not close the airport [completely]. We ought to look for options that allow us to fix the problems while keeping the airport functioning at the same time,’’ he said yesterday.

The prime minister declined to go into detail, but suggested the relevant authorities should not give up searching for the most viable way out of the debacle.

He was informed by Transport Minister Theera Haocharoen that the Airports of Thailand (AoT) board will meet tomorrow to debate how best to handle the issue.

The meeting will determine if the airport will need to close completely for a specified period.

A thorough investigation is necessary to establish the extent of the damage, the prime minister said.

He said the extent of repairs needed is a technical issue requiring a precise answer that can only be provided by the relevant authorities investigating the problems.

The government is explaining the situation to the international community to shore up the airport’s reputation, Gen Surayud said.

Meanwhile, a committee investigating runway and taxiway problems has found the structure of the runways and taxiways strong and up to standard, said a source close to the panel.

Cracks have caused damage to the surface only, said the source.

Initially, the panel concluded damage to runways and taxiways was caused by water in the sand layer and substandard materials used in the asphalt which weakened its strength.

Hasty construction of the airport and the engineers’ ignorance of the airport site, which was once a swamp, might have also contributed to the damage, said the source.

The findings are based on an inspection of the taxiways and runways on Thursday and Friday by a committee chaired by Tortrakul Yomnak and the Highways Department.

The inspection was to test runway strength and to find out the cause of uneven surfaces on the taxiways.

The problems can be solved by draining water in the sand layer and paving the aprons with standard asphalt, said the source.

Underground water affects the taxiways, but not the runways which are 1.4 metres above sea level.

The taxiways are 0.75 metres above sea level.

The source said the committee is split over whether or not the entire airport should be shut down to facilitate repairs.

A source at the AoT said yesterday it is likely the government will opt for partial closure, as suggested by the committee’s findings.

‘‘It is likely that parts [of the runways and taxiways] will be closed. There is no need to shut down the entire facility. Since some flights will be transferred to Don Muang airport, repairs will be easier,’’ said the source.

Don Muang, which is being renovated, is expected to open in a few weeks.

Mr Tortrakul said the committee would report the findings to AoT board chairman Saprang Kalayanamitr tomorrow.
He said a press conference will then be held tomorrow afternoon to release details of the investigation.

Bron: Bangkok Post / www.bangkokpost.com (11 February 2007)

[Krung_Thep]

Probe engineer says cracks just superficial

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Tortrakul: Repairs should take 2-4 weeks

AMORNRAT MAHITTHIROOK

The complete closure of Suvarnabhumi airport is unnecessary as cracks on the runways and taxiways are only superficial with the underground structure found to be safe, investigators led by engineer Tortrakul Yomnak said yesterday.

He was disclosing the results of his committee’s investigation into cracks at the new airport. The inquiry was launched on Jan 26 under the orders of the Airports of Thailand (AoT) board led by Saprang Kalayanamitr.

Closing the entire airport for repairs has never been planned by the AoT or the Transport Ministry, but is being favoured by a National Legislative Assembly committee looking into the problems at Suvarnabhumi, led by Bannawit Kengrian. They are concerned for the safety of planes and passengers.

The decision on the fate of the airport still rests with Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont and his cabinet.

Gen Surayud has said he will announce a decision tomorrow. But a source on the AoT board said the cabinet might decide on the matter today if Transport Minister Theera Haocharoen can forward the report in time for the weekly meeting.

The decision will be mainly based on the findings in the report by Mr Tortrakul and his team, the minister said.

Mr Tortrakul said complete closure of Suvarnabhumi would be unnecessary as the repairs to damaged areas should take only two to four weeks. However, one of the two runways would be closed to free up space for repairs to take place.

The airport could remain operational while the cracks were being fixed, he said, rejecting reports it could take six months or even a year to fix them.

Mr Tortrakul said the problems existed only on the tarmac made of asphaltic concrete. Asphaltic concrete forms the surface of runways, taxiways and taxi lanes which are adjacent to aprons.

Highways Department experts have tested the underlying concrete structures and found they measured up to high safety standards, Mr Tortrakul said.

Most of the damaged areas were on the taxi lanes and taxiways with the remaining small portion at the ends of both runways, he said.

The cracks were caused by underground water that had seeped up from the sand blanket, he said. The water naturally weakens the tarmac.

Mr Tortrakul blamed designers for failing to incorporate drainage to cope with rises in the level of underground water, which were natural for airfields developed on swamp land. The existing drainage could cope only with normal rainfall.

The taxi lanes and taxiways could be temporarily repaired for use and holes drilled in the walls of existing channels inside the airport for immediate drainage of underground water, he said.

A permanent solution would require an in-depth study of the nature of the underground water at the location to design an appropriate underground drainage system.

He was also concerned about issues affecting the terminal. An initial inquiry under AoT board member Yodyiam Theptranont found problems in 30 spots.

Gen Saprang, also assistant secretary-general of the Council for National Security, expected the report by Mr Tortrakul to end worries about the safety of the new airport, and agreed with him that Suvarnabhumi could remain operational.

But the AoT will commission a team of international structural experts to re-examine the problems, he said. That could be possible after the Transport Ministry obtains a budget allocation from the cabinet, the AoT board chairman said.

A decision on who would be responsible for the repairs would be made after talks with all the firms involved, including those in charge of the design and construction.

Adm Theera said there will be no change in policy announced by Gen Surayud last week. Bangkok will have two international airports, Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang.

Bron: Bangkok Post / www.bangkokpost.com (13 February 2007)

[Krung_Thep]

(BangkokPost.com from reports)

Representatives of international airlines are meeting today in Bangkok after they threatened to halt flights to Thailand rather than move back to the old Don Muang airport.

Board of Airline Representatives president Brian Sinclair-Thompson, speaking for more than 60 carriers, told the media on Friday night:

"Some members are going to review their commitment to continue their services from Thailand if they are forced to split operations to serve two airports.‘’

The statement forces a standoff between the airlines who insist on staying at Suvarnabhumi Airport on one hand, and the government which wants to increase flights at Don Muang and repair problem-plagued Suvarnabhumi.

Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont has announced he will personally take over the handling of problems related to Suvarnabhumi.

On March 25, a total of only 71 flights are to begin using Don Muang. They include all flights by budget airlines Nok Air and One Two Go, and a handful of Thai Airways domestic flights

The Murphy Jahn/TAMS/ACT (MJTA) consortium which built Suvarbabhumi claimed on Friday that the new airport’s design met with all the requirements of the terms of reference it had signed with Airport of Thailand.

But Wanchai Wimuktayon, managing director of ACT Consultants Co, which is part of the MJTA, also said the design had been modified during construction to cut costs.

The consortium claims to be confident that the new airport is safe enough for all passengers and staff working in the facility, and all airlines agree.

*Bron: Bangkok Post / www.bangkokpost.com *