Minister promotes Thai aviation hub

The Transport Ministry and aviation bodies aim to establish Thailand as an aviation hub, emphasising maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) to meet international demand in the region.

- MOLPASORN SHOOWONG KOMSAN TORTERMVASANA

"We must establish our own fullscale MRO, otherwise neighbouring countries such as Singapore will reap all the aviation benefits," said Transport Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn at the "Skyconomy" seminar co-hosted by Bualuang Securities this week.

He said Thailand is located near the two most populous nations, India and China, and serves as a gateway to Indochina, underlining its strong potential to become an aviation hub.

The US Federal Aviation Administration recently upgraded Thailand's ranking back to Category 1 from Category 2, allowing Thai carriers and Thai pilots to return to the US, while United Airlines resumed its service to Thailand last week after an 11-year hiatus.

Thailand passed the International Civil Aviation Organization's Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme with a preliminary score of 91.4%, exceeding the global average of 70.5%, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT).

Mr Phiphat said the ministry plans to attract airlines to fly to lesscrowded airports, such as Krabi and Chiang Mai, as the major airports of Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang and Phuket face congestion.