Total nationwide flights increased 15% year-on-year over the Songkran long holiday period.
Nopasit Chakpitak, president of Aeronautical Radio of Thailand Limited (AEROTHAI), said it is normal to see a spike in flights during long holidays. This is especially true for Songkran, when people usually return to their hometowns to visit family members and then travel back to major cities for work.
According to Nopasit, this year’s Songkran saw more than 8,500 flights over the seven-day period, averaging 1,220 flights a day.
The AEROTHAI president attributed the increase in the number of foreign travelers to the government’s decision to relax COVID-19 restrictions. He noted that the removal of the RT-PCR test requirement and reducing the number of quarantine days for arriving international visitors have tremendously contributed to the surge.
He nevertheless projected that the number of international flights to Thailand will increase at a slow pace, due in part to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Nopasit also noted that the density of flights was 55% lower than during the pre-pandemic Songkran period.
From April 11-17, the number of flights for the Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang international airports averaged 510, and 345 respectively. (NNT)
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