Phuket International Airport is an international airport serving the island province of Phuket in southern Thailand. It is located north of the city of Phuket in the Mai Khao subdistrict of Thalang district. The airport plays a major role in Thailand's tourism industry, as Phuket is a popular resort destination. It is the third-busiest airport in Thailand in terms of passengers, after Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Mueang International Airport in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region. The airport set a record of 15.1million arrivals and departures in 2016, up 17.8 percent from 2015.

Facilities Terminals

Phuket International Airport features three distinct terminals to manage its air traffic. Terminal 2 is designated for international flights, while Terminal 3 handles domestic flights. Terminal X, specifically intended for charter flights, was opened in February 2014.

To accommodate increasing passenger traffic, Phuket International Airport underwent a significant expansion and renovation project, which was completed in 2016 at a cost of 5.14 billion baht. This expansion of the new international terminal increased its capacity to handle 12.5 million passengers annually. Overall, the expansion enhanced the airport's total capacity from 6.5 million to 20 million passengers per year.

In light of the airport's congestion and limited space for further expansion, a proposal for a rail link from Krabi International Airport, an alternate location, was put forward in 2012. This suggestion aimed to alleviate the growing traffic and logistical challenges faced by Phuket Airport.

Future

A proposal for a new international airport has been put forward, aimed at serving three provinces: Phang Nga, Phuket, and Krabi. The construction of this airport is planned to be carried out in two phases. The first phase of the project was anticipated to be completed by 2025, but in 2022, the entire proposal was put on hold. The new airport was intended to function as an alternative to the existing Phuket and Krabi airports, offering additional capacity and potentially alleviating air traffic congestion in the region.

Airlines and destinations

Traffic statistics Phuket is a favorite tourist destination in the region. International passengers mainly come from Asia Pacific and Europe. In 2012 it ranked second-busiest in total passenger traffic, after Suvarnabhumi Airport in the Bangkok metropolitan area. In mid-2015 the airport, designed to handle 20 flights per hour, was servicing 23 per hour.

Phuket airport handled 12.9 million passengers in 2015, 12.8 percent more than 2014, with international numbers rising 8.27 percent to 6.95 million and domestic up 18.6 percent to 5.9 million. Aircraft movements grew 11.6 percent to 84,758, with 43,996 international (up 7.63 percent) and 40,762 domestic (up 16.1 percent).

Passenger movements YearDomesticInternationalTotalChange%19951,730,895919,5032,650,398 9.6819961,896,068879,6882,775,756 4.7319971,898,303942,3362,840,639 2.3419982,132,1081,010,6063,142,714 10.6319992,035,8361,189,8953,225,731 2.6420002,171,1461,358,7453,541,575 9.4320012,240,2641,370,4293,610,693 2.2920022,230,6631,382,8583,613,521 0.0820032,104,5481,496,4013,600,949 0.3520042,826,0222,024,8794,850,901 34.7120052,246,723922,3113,169,034 34.6720063,032,9761,677,7234,710,699 48.6520073,513,9662,190,3995,704,365 21.0920083,321,4432,409,3055,703,748 0.4620093,489,0122,290,9065,779,918 0.8620103,701,4273,342,3567,043,783 21.8720114,097,2764,370,7198,467,995 20.2220124,475,6245,065,9289,541,552 12.6820134,958,8806,383,61111,342,491 18.8720144,976,4516,425,04711,401,498 0.5220155,909,3566,950,00012,859,356 12.820166,997,8798,109,30615,107,185 17.4820177,655,5799,200,05816,855,637 11.620187,817,89410,403,63118,221,525 8.120197,452,262 10,666,17818,118,440 0.5720202,332,3493,155,2645,429,708 70.020211,502,356287,4811,789,837 67.0420224,659,6723,155,2647,814,936 336.63%20236,262,3267,716,85813,979,184 78.88%20246,641,91210,573,40317,215,315 18.75%2025 6,636,76010,837,29117,474,051 1.50%

Aircraft movements

YearDomestic International Total Change%199511,1359,38020,515 6.79199611,5869,62621,212 3.40199711,40210,25721,659 2.1119989,67310,27219,945 7.9119999,39111,88721,278 6.68200011,85011,47223,322 9.61200112,70512,46725,172 7.93200210,92012,24823,168 7.96200312,66912,01524,684 6.54200416,76515,91732,682 32.40200514,1159,97024,085 26.30200617,20713,68030,887 28.24200723,91516,88440,799 32.09200820,81417,17737,991 6.88200920,88316,98737,870 0.32201025,31123,25748,568 28.25201127,93228,74156,673 16.69201228,57832,42661,004 7.64201332,37040,21972,589 18.99201435,09640,87875,974 4.66201540,76243,99684,758 16.1201648,88348,93097,813 15.4201752,60953,484106,093 8.5201854,51463,766118,280 11.49201950,40965,167115,576 2.29202025,50513,34338,848 66.4202114,3474,17718,524 52.32202236,03321,43657,469 210.24202344,08043,22487,304 51.91202446,36957,306103,675 23.15202548,76157,824106,585 2.81

Freight tonnage

YearDomesticInternationalTotalChange%19955,6595,02110,680 198.1619967,9945,62013,614 27.4719978,2857,52215,807 16.1119988,2137,68315,896 0.56199910,96311,45522,418 41.0320009,84111,09120,932 6.6320019,3459,65118,996 9.25200210,35212,85523,207 22.17200310,86612,33823,204 0.01200413,38214,65928,041 20.85200512,3066,42518,731 33.20200613,3844,72918,113 3.30200713,2686,45219,720 8.87200812,6716,53519,206 2.61200913,1957,78020,975 9.21201017,43412,81030,244 44.19201117,62710,68728,314 6.38201218,79815,54134,339 21.28201317,23417,38634,620 0.82201417,65322,63140,284 16.36201514,55222,82237,374 7.22201614,67628,53843,214 5.73201715,67037,52953,990 23.1201815,86446,27462,138 15.09201911,592 41,12052,712 15.1720204,42910,79711,904 78.120212,1112,0984,209 64.6420223,1523,3916,543 68.3720234,69927,51832,217 330.7120244,54953,10657,655 78.9620254,97952,79557,774 0.20

Busiest international routes + Busiest international routes to and from Phuket International Airport (2019) Rank Airport Passengers handledChange%1 Singapore 1,052,635 0.58%2 Kuala Lumpur–International871,584 1.00%3 Shanghai–Pudong760,864 1.64%4 Hong Kong642,904 4.57%5 Chengdu–Shuangliu546,908 32.49%6 Seoul–Incheon461,967 6.57%7 Doha422,087 23.08%8 Beijing–Capital412,213 4.58%9 Dubai–International367,967 13.90%10 Moscow–Sheremetyevo362,977 11.53%

Busiest domestic routes

+ Busiest domestic routes to and from Phuket Airport (2019) Rank Airport Passengers handledChange%1 Bangkok–Suvarnabhumi3,371,171 0.29%2 Bangkok–Don Mueang3,005,310 9.86%3 Chiang Mai415,771 12.23%4 Pattaya165,992 4.58%5 Koh Samui154,242 10.97%

Phuket Airport passenger totals (millions)

Incidents and accidents 15 April 1985: A Thai Airways Company Boeing 737-200 (registered HS-TBB) crashed, killing all 11 people on board. The crew had issued a radio call informing air traffic control that both engines had flamed out. No cause could be determined for the engine shutdown. 31 August 1987: Thai Airways Flight 365, a Boeing 737-200 (registered HS-TBC) from Hat Yai International Airport crashed into the ocean upon final approach, killing all 83 people on board. The investigation determined pilot error as the primary cause. 11 March 2026: An Air India Express Boeing 737 MAX 8 (registered VT-BWQ) from Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Airport made a hard landing on runway 09, causing damage to the aircraft's nose landing gear, resulting in the aircraft losing both nose landing gear tires . The aircraft became disabled on the runway, forcing the closure of the airport's only runway for approximately six hours while the aircraft was removed and runway inspected. All passengers and crew were evacuated safely with no injuries reported.

References

External links

Official website

Accident history for HKT at Aviation Safety Network