Pai Airport Explained

Nativename:Thai: ท่าอากาศยานปาย
Iata:PYY
Icao:VTCI
Type:Public
City-Served:Pai
Pushpin Map:Thailand
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of airport in Thailand
Pushpin Label:PYY/VTCI
Pushpin Label Position:right
R1-Number:01/19
R1-Length-F:3,280
R1-Length-M:1,000
R1-Surface:Asphalt
Stat1-Header:Passengers
Stat1-Data:1,032
Stat-Year:2019

Pai Airport is in Wiang Tai subdistrict, Pai district, Mae Hong Son province in northern Thailand. Originally constructed during World War II by the Japanese Imperial Army, the airport was deserted after the end of the war and was developed by the province in 1945 for civil aviation.

Located on a 72.3-rai area around a kilometre away from Mueang Mae Hong Son, the capital district of the province, the airport has one runway (23 metres wide, 1,000 metres long)[1]

In early 2017, an expansion of the airport was considered by the government to increase tourism, but was ultimately denied after opposition from locals.[2]

Airlines and destinations

Since Kan Air discontinued all flights in April 2017, there has been no scheduled commercial airline service to Pai.

In May 2018, a new carrier called Wisdom Airways announced plans to fly from Pai to Chiang Mai. A year later, the airline stopped all flights when it ceased all operations in 2019, leaving the airport dormant.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: กรมการบินพลเรือน. minisite.aviation.go.th. 2016-03-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20160312004840/https://minisite.aviation.go.th/about.php?site=pai&SiteMenuID=1252. 2016-03-12. dead.
  2. News: DOA denies expansion at Pai airport. Bangkok Post.