Don Mueang achieves record

BANGKOK  Bangkok’s Don Mueang made it into the record books as the world’s largest LCC airport, overtaking Kuala Lumpur International airport, Barcelona and Las Vegas, according to a Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation analysis.
CAPA said Bangkok’s Don Mueang airport saw passenger traffic surge by 50% in the first half of the year, enabling it to become the world’s largest LCC airport.
Don Mueang Airport handled 14.4 million passengers in the first half of the year, representing a staggering 50% increase compared to the same period last year, according to the latest data from Airports of Thailand.
LCC passenger traffic at Don Mueang increased by 44% from 9.3 million in the first half of 2014 to 13.4 million in the first half of this year.
inside no 4 “Don Mueang has overtaken Kuala Lumpur International (KLIA), which was until recently Asia’s largest LCC airport, as well European LCC airport leader Barcelona El Prat and North American LCC airport leader Las Vegas McCarran.”
Growth has accelerated from an already very fast clip in 2014. Don Mueang saw passenger traffic grow by 31% in 2014 to 21.5 million, including a 32% increase in LCC passenger traffic to 20.6 million.
In 2013 Don Mueang handled 15.7 million LCC passengers for the full year, making it roughly the 20th largest LCC airport in the world. The 13.4 million passengers handled in the first half of 2015 make Don Mueang the largest, based on CAPA estimates.
The analysis centre added Las Vegas McCarran handled 13.3 million LCC passengers in the first half of 2015. McCarran does not provide an LCC breakdown but an LCC figure can be calculated as it provides a monthly traffic breakdown for every airline that serves Las Vegas.
Barcelona El Prat Airport reported passenger traffic of 18.064 million for the first half of 2015 but does not provide an LCC breakdown.
For Barcelona to match the 13.4 million LCC passengers it would have needed a virtually impossible LCC penetration rate of 74%. According to Spanish tourism ministry data, LCCs accounted for 63% of arriving passengers at Barcelona El Prat in first half of the year. For CAPA’s estimate of 12 million passengers a LCC penetration rate of 66% is used.
Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) figure of 12.6 million passengers is based on the 12.32 million passengers handled by new hybrid terminal KLIA2 in first half of 2015 (according to data from Malaysia Airports) plus an estimated 250,000 LCC passengers for the main terminal.
“Malaysia Airports reported a 2% reduction in total passenger traffic for KLIA in the first half of 2015 to 24.1 million. LCC traffic likely still grew, but modestly, enabling Don Mueang to jump past KLIA with its 44% LCC growth rate,” the report said.
Don Mueang is currently served by 12 LCCs, including four AirAsia branded carriers. Thai Airways full-service regional subsidiary Thai Smile, Maldivian and several Thailand-based leisure carriers account for the 7% of passenger traffic not flown by the LCCs.
Nok Air and AirAsia also have expanded by launching new Bangkok-based long-haul LCC joint ventures, NokScoot and Thai AirAsia X.
Scoot moved its Singapore-Bangkok flights from Suvarnabhumi to Don Mueang in late 2014. Three other foreign LCCs also launched services to Don Mueang last year, including Lion Group Malaysian affiliate Malindo Air, Tigerair Taiwan and Taiwanese start-up V Air. (On the full-service side Thai Smile also began operations at Don Mueang in August 2014 with three domestic routes.)
Hong Kong Express launched services to Don Mueang on 20 July this year, becoming the 12th LCC (and seventh foreign LCC) to serve the airport.
Don Mueang-based LCC fleet grew from 68 to 80 aircraft in first half of 2015.
The Don Mueang-based LCC fleet is expected to grow by another 16 aircraft in the second half this year, reaching 96 aircraft. This would result in an annual growth rate of over 40%, CAPA said.
The total LCC fleet in Thailand is projected to reach 105 aircraft at the end of 2015, when also including the Thai AirAsia aircraft based outside Bangkok and the initial fleet of Suvarnabhumi-based Thai VietJet.
Thailand initially forced all airlines to move from Don Mueang to Suvarnabhumi when Suvarnabhumi opened in 2006, but quickly changed its one-airport policy for Bangkok and reopened Don Mueang in 2007.
Don Mueang is located 25 km north of central Bangkok while Suvarnabhumi is about 32 km to the east.

sourced:ttrweekly.com