Air India is first Indian carrier to take off from Bangkok's new airport
By Our Corporate Bureau | 27 Sep 2006
The first AI flight, AI348, operating on the Delhi-Bangkok-Shanghai route will be the first AI flight to take-off for Shanghai tomorrow afternoon from the new international aviation hub of Bangkok. The Suvarnabhumi International Airport measures five times the size of the existing Don Muang Bangkok International Airport. It covers a total area of 563,000 sq metres — 10,000 sq metres bigger than the former record holder, Hong Kong's Chep Lap Kok airport.
With an investment of Baht 731 million (Rs 897 million), the 132.2-meters tall air traffic control tower has set a new world record by overtaking the former record holder Kuala Lumpur International Airport by 10 metres.
The new air traffic control tower enables all air traffic controllers an optimal 360 degrees view of all operating surfaces, the length of runways, taxi-ways and aircraft stands in its entirety. Despite its height and surrounding glass panels, the control tower can resist surface winds of up to 200km per sq m and wind speeds of 165 kph. It's special design and structure also enables it to withstand earthquakes measuring a magnitude of 5 on the Richter scale.
