Samui Airport Explained

Nativename:Thai: ท่าอากาศยานสมุย
Iata:USM
Icao:VTSM
Pushpin Map:Thailand
Pushpin Mapsize:220
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of airport in Thailand
Mapframe:yes
Pushpin Label:USM/VTSM
Pushpin Label Position:right
Type:Private
Owner-Oper:Bangkok Airways
City-Served:Ko Samui
Location:Bo Phut, Ko Samui, Surat Thani, Thailand
Operating Base:Bangkok Airways
Elevation-F:64
Elevation-M:20
R1-Number:17/35
R1-Length-F:6,890
R1-Length-M:2,100
R1-Surface:Asphalt
Stat-Year:2015
Stat1-Header:Aircraft movements
Stat1-Data:19,467
Stat2-Header:Total passengers
Stat2-Data:2,051,289

Samui International Airport (Thai: ท่าอากาศยานสมุย), also known as Ko Samui Airport or Koh Samui Airport, is a privately owned international airport on the island of Ko Samui (Koh Samui) in Thailand. It is located in the island’s Bo Phut subdistrict. The airport is roughly 2 km north of the main city and largest resort centre on the island, Chaweng. It was built by Bangkok Airways. Construction began in 1982 and the airport was officially opened in April 1989.[1]

Facilities

Samui Airport has a unique, open-air design, with the indoor areas being the gift shop, ticket office, toilets, and VIP lounge area. It is also the country's seventh-busiest airport, handling more than a million passengers annually. The airport has terminals (domestic and international), plus a building for check-in and baggage claim. The international terminal is about 50 metres north of the domestic terminal. Samui Airport is near the Big Buddha Pier, where ferries depart for Ko Pha-ngan. High-speed ferries to Ko Tao and Chumphon depart from the Maenam Beach Pier, approximately 6 km northwest of the airport.

Airlines and destinations

Since the airport is privately owned by Bangkok Airways, it has a near-monopoly on flights.[2] Between 2008 and 2018, Thai Airways International also operated two daily flights from Bangkok.[2] Scoot has also started a Singapore-Koh Samui route on the Embraer E190 jet starting from 13th of May 2024.

Statistics

YearFlightsArriving PassengersDeparting PassengersTotal passengers
2005[3] 15,818584,023621,3131,205,336
2006[4] 18,762689,063711,1961,400,259
2007[5] 15,783577,600611,5541,189,154
2008[6] 17,707673,851691,2831,365,439
2015[7] 1,024,373
201914,3251,208,882
Source: Thailand's Department of Civil Aviation & C9 Hotel Works

Accidents and incidents

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Thai Airways to end Bkk-Samui flights . Bangkok . The Nation . 2 June 2018. 27 June 2018.
  2. https://centreforaviation.com/analysis/reports/bangkok-samui-southeast-asias-largest-monopoly-air-route-429157
  3. Web site: Samui Airport 2005 Statistics . Thai Department of Civil Aviation . dead . https://archive.today/20120605052132/www.aviation.go.th/technical/stat2005/Samui.htm . 5 June 2012 . dmy-all .
  4. Web site: Samui Airport 2006 Statistics . Thai Department of Civil Aviation . dead . https://archive.today/20120605052131/www.aviation.go.th/technical/stat2006/Samui.htm . 5 June 2012 . dmy-all .
  5. Web site: Samui Airport 2007 Statistics . Thai Department of Civil Aviation . dead . https://archive.today/20120605052131/www.aviation.go.th/technical/stat2007/Samui.htm . 5 June 2012 . dmy-all .
  6. Web site: Samui Airport 2008 Statistics . Thai Department of Civil Aviation . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110927124348/http://www.aviation.go.th/technical/stat/2008/TSM2008.pdf . 27 September 2011 . dmy-all .
  7. Web site: Samui Airport 2015 Statistics . C9 Hotel Works.
  8. Web site: ACCIDENT DETAILS . Plane Crash Info . https://web.archive.org/web/20140309232149/http://www.planecrashinfo.com/1990/1990-66.htm . 9 March 2014 . live . 6 October 2014.
  9. Web site: Fatalities reported as Bangkok Airways ATR 72–500 skids off runway . Flight Global . 4 August 2009.