First up finally some encouraging news received us from Thailand. This week we were informed that Bangkok’s second airport, Don Mueang (IATA: DMK) is set to partially reopen in January after it got affected during the country’s devastating floods in October. A Thai news site reported that a budget of Bt490 million (US$ 14.3 million) approved by the Cabinet, will be used for restore the eastern runway of Don Mueang Airport, expected to reopen at the end of January for military aircraft, said Flying Officer Anirut Thanomkulbutra, president of Airports of Thailand (AoT).

At this stage the elephant in this week’s news room should probably be addressed. I’m talking about the planned public sector strike in the United Kingdom. The for Wednesday, 30th November planned actions are understood to severely affect the country’s largest airport, Heathrow (IATA: LHR). One of the many news reports this week was the one from the BBC that read that [Heathrow's] operator BAA warned of “gridlock” and said passengers could face 12-hour delays on Wednesday when immigration officers go on strike over pensions. The same source quoted a letter to chief operating officer Norman Boivin to all airlines operating into Heathrow saying “The delays at immigration are likely to be so long that passengers could not be safely accommodated within the terminals and would need to be held on arriving aircraft.” If you are planning to travel through the airport on Wednesday, make sure to follow the airport’s twitter announcements.

These days airports don’t just compete on the number of flights and basic terminal services they offer, they often (need to) go a step further and come up with some unique ways of differentiating themselves. Singapore Changi’s giant fun slide comes to mind here for example. Now, Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport (IATA: AMS) has had it’s own brainy moment as Reuters reported on Thursday: [Schiphol] now has the world’s first vending machine capable of printing out personalised giant canvas banners in just a few minutes. According to the story, you can pick your message, whether that is “Missed you Mummy”, “I love you”, “Will you marry me?”, or anything else that makes you stand out from the crowd, choose the font and background design, pay between four and 15 euros ($19.98) depending on the length of the banner, and hit the button.

And finally to the United States where, other than expected, we didn’t receive any of those long delay reports from the increased passenger numbers over the Thanksgiving weekend, but instead heard of an “old friend” again: the Bikini Girl. The Daily Mail printed the following headline this week: Air passenger who famously stripped to her bikini in TSA protest returns to LA a year later… and guess what, peels off again. Well, we’ll leave you to judge for yourself or – if you must – have a look at the newspaper’s full story here.

Have a great week everyone – safe travels!

[Picture from Flickr - Some rights reserved by ilConte]

First of all, a big relieve for all cat lovers. The kitty, Jack that went missing at New York’s John F. Kennedy International airport (IATA: JFK) when its owner relocated – we wrote about it in our last week’s news – has been found. He’s alive and according to our friends at Reuters the pet cat which was missing for two months has been discovered alive in a customs room. The owner now plans to pick the cat up herself to make sure it arrives safely in her new hometown of San Francisco.

Then on Tuesday we wrote about how Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport (IATA: DMK) became a refugee point for hundreds of flood victims. Later in the week it was reported that floodwaters began pouring over sandbagged barriers protecting Bangkok’s second airport, forcing a halt to commercial flights after airlines based there suspended operations (Business Week).

This week we also heard from a continent that rarely makes it into the news: Africa. According to the Agencia Angola Press the minister of Transports, Augusto Tomás, announced that a new airport of the country’s capital Luanda shall be totally concluded within 26 months. According to the article, the minister considered the project as very important for the strategy and socio-economic development of the country. The new airport will be built about 40 km from the city and is scheduled to replace the one currently in use, Quatro de Fevereiro International Airport (IATA: LAD).

And finally we have the TSA in the news again. This time the US Transport Security Administration made news with an agent leaving a note in a passenger’s luggage after finding a vibrator when screening the checked bag at Newark International Airport (IATA: EWR). Forbes published the photo of the actual note which reads “get your freak on girl”. Two days later the same source then revealed that the TSA agent who wrote the note was found and penalized. According to Forbes, TSA has done an impressive job investigating the incident and apologizing to the traveler, Jill Filopovic, who blogs at Feministe.

Let’s leave it at that and conclude our round-up. Have a great new week everyone!

[Photo from Flickr - Some rights reserved by Jairus]

After almost 100 since the first flight took off, in 2006, Don Mueang International Airport (IATA: DMK) closed following the opening of the newly built Suvarnabhumi Airport (IATA: BKK). One year later, the airport located north of the Thai capital Bangkok was reopened for some domestic flights. Today, however, the airport serves an entirely different purpose, albeit (hopefully) only temporarily: it provides shelter to hundreds of people affected by Thailand’s worst floods in five decades. According to a CNN blog, the airport has also been used as the home of the flood relief operation command.

The airport has already a history of being used for other purposes other than commercial flights. In 1914 it was officially opened as a Royal Thai Air Force base and during the Vietnam War, Don Muang was a major command and logistics hub of the United States Air Force. Commercial aviation began in 1924 with the arrival of a KLM aircraft. Interestingly some people still refer to Don Mueang Airport with its former IATA code BKK which is now officially associated with the new Suvarnabhumi Airport. Don Mueang, which was spelled “Don Muang” now retains the three letter code DMK.

As for the devastating floods that currently threaten a large part of Thailand,they originate from the Chao Phraya and the Mekong River basin and began in late July. So far the floods have caused 307 reported deaths with over 2.3 million people being affected. Wikipedia claims the flooding has inundated about six million hectares of land, over 300,000 hectares of which is farmland, in fifty-eight provinces, from Chiang Mai in the North to parts of the capital city of Bangkok near the mouth of the Chao Phraya. It has been described as “the worst flooding yet in terms of the amount of water and people affected”.

As the situation in Thailand is changing rapidly, reports now even suggest that Don Mueang Airport is threatened by the water and that people were told to move to higher ground in order to escape the water. Thousands of people rely on the government to provide them with temporary accommodation after having had to leave their own homes.

Be sure to check with your travel agent or airline before travelling to Bangkok and other parts in Thailand. CNN provides up-to-date travel information for Bangkok and Thailand through their service CNNGo.

Update: According to a CNN report, the CEO of Nok Air announced the airline is canceling flights in and out of Don Muang Airport until October 31 due to the “flood crisis.” In the same report it was said that Pate Sarasin, CEO of Nok Air, posted a Twitter message saying “the water level is now at a critical area at the northern part of the runway.”

Update 2: An ABC report now quotes authorities who said the terminal had become too crowded and thousands of people displaced there would be relocated. The airport is now also closed for all commercial flights.

[The feature picture is a LateDeparture composition derived from Flickr photos by mikiane and nimboo - Some rights reserved]

Named by King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Suvarnabhumi (pronounced ‘su-wan-na-poom’) is the fourth largest airport terminal in the world and features 563,000 square meters of terminal space packed with amenities and traveller facilities. The terminal is sectioned into four main levels:

• Level one – bus and taxi lobby
• Level two – arrivals
• Level three – “Meeting Centre” packed with amenities and traveller facilities
• Level four – departures

Just 300 meters from the airport sits the four-star Novotel Suvarnabhumi Hotel, which is accessible via an underground walkway. The hotel has 600 rooms, as well as function rooms, restaurants, and spa and fitness centre.

Restaurants
There are approximately 50 different dining venues available within the airport terminal, with most offering comfortable seating areas. There is also a selection of proper restaurants to choose from. Dining facilities are arranged to best suit clientele and based to destination. For example, Asian eateries are housed in the eastern concourses near Japan Airlines and Thai Airways while European-style cuisine is offered in the western concourse near the gates which facilitate Europe and the USA. All dining venues are open 24 hours. This includes:

• Kinramen, which offers Japanese noodle dishes, rice with toppings, and a selection of sushi.
• Asian Corner, which is a buffet featuring a selection of fare ranging from Chinese dim sum to Korean BBQ.
• Mango Tree is an upscale Thai restaurant.
• Fast food outlets include Burger King, Dairy Queen, and Pizza Company as well as the Chinese Chow and Haru and Pitcher and Plane, which offers sandwiches.
• Four wine bars are located along Concourse D offering fine wine and seafood. Breakfast is served before 11 AM.
• Snack and deli corners, coffee shops, juice bars, and ice cream parlours are located throughout the terminal, including Starbucks and Britain’s own Whittard of Chelsea.

Shopping
Suvarnabhumi Airport also offers a wealth of duty-free shopping, with shops providing everything from liquor and tobacco to cosmetics and toys.

• There are several brands of perfumeries and cosmetics on offer, including Shiseido, Dr. Brant, Anna Sui, Provocateur, and PureLogicol. Products are presented in a long walk-through ‘street’ arrangement convenient for browsing.
• Fashion and boutique offerings include Salvatore Ferragamo, Burberry, Coach, Swarovski, Mont Blanc, Benetton, Mandarina Duck Lonchamp, and LeSportSac.
• Also on offer are a wide range of wines and spirits from around the world.
• In the Royal Project and OTOP area of Level 4, the traveller will find products from Thailand. Those bearing the Royal Project symbol do so as a mark of their excellence and quality. OTOP, which stands for “One Tambon, One Product” are products which are part of a scheme to encourage Thai villages to produce their own, unique products.

Getting to Downtown
For those leaving the airport, there are plenty of options for getting to downtown Bangkok, with transportation by taxi, airport bus, passenger bus, limousine, boat, train and even by helicopter available. Transportation costs are relatively cheap.

10. London Stansted blockade

Early December environmental activists have stopped flights at London’s Stansted airport (IATA: STN) after breaking through to the runway, raising security concerns at Britain’s third-busiest airport. The protests against a further expansion of the airport caused a serious knock-on effect on the airport’s flight operations causing over 50 flights to be cancelled.

9. Opening of Beijing airport Terminal 3

On March 26, Beijing airport (IATA: PEK) opened its new Terminal 3, designed by Sir Norman Foster, after four years of construction. It is the world’s largest airport building, covering more than a million square meters, designed to accommodate an estimated 50 million passengers a year by 2020.

8. Closure of Berlin’s iconic Tempelhof airport

Open one, close one; on the October 30, Berlin’s iconic Tempelhof airport closed down for good. Originally opened in 1923, the later built airport halls and neighbouring buildings, intended to become the gateway to Europe and a symbol of Hitler’s “world capital” Germania. Read our full coverage here.

7. Kalitta Air crash at Brussels airport

On Sunday, 25 May a Boeing 747 cargo plane overshot the runway at Brussels Zaventem airport (IATA: BRU) and crashed resulting the aircraft to break into 2 parts. The spectacular picture made the news everywhere.

6. Frightening landing at Hamburg’s airport

A low pressure system named “Emma” nearly caused a disaster at Hamburg airport (IATA: HAM) in March. The Lufthansa A320 plane struggled to make the runway through 90 kilometre-per-hour crosswinds resulting in the 39 year old pilots last minute go-around procedure and a safe second attempt. The frightening approach was caught on camera and is an extraordinary piece which will now probably be used all over the world in pilot training classrooms.

5. Hong Kong wins ‘Airport of the Year’ award

In July Hong Kong International airport (IATA: HKG) was named best Airport in the world, in the passenger survey results released by Skytrax. Despite being “only” rated in 5th place in the most-timely airport survey, Hong Kong received the prestigious award after Skytrax collected 8.2 million questionnaires completed by passengers over a 10-month time period. Read our congratulating article here.

4. Spanair crash at Madrid airport

A combination of basic pilot error and an electrical failure was the possible cause of the crash of a Spanair plane at Madrid’s Barajas airport (IATA: MAD) on 20 August that killed 154 people. The airport was closed for several hours after the accident.

3. Radar malfunction at Dublin airport

In the midst of the summer holiday season, Dublin airport (IATA: DUB) made the news with its malfunctioning radar system which meant that controllers lost some functionality on their screens meaning they were unable to see the labels attached to ‘blips’ that signify individual aircraft. The problem resulted in massive delays and many cancellations over several days.

2. Bangkok blockade

Protesters supporting the People’s Alliance for Democracy stormed Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport (IATA: BKK) in late November, occupying the departure lounge and blocking all exits. With that 3,000 people were stranded within the airport and another 350,000 were stranded within Thailand. Read our interview with an affected traveller.

1. Chaos at London Heathrow’s new Terminal 5

In March BAA, the company that owns Heathrow airport, opened its newest addition of what should have been a proud event for London’s most criticised airport. Instead, the opening resulted in a PR disaster with BAA losing thousands of bags over several months. The event then became one of the triggers leading to the demands of breaking up BAA’s monopolistic ownership of airports in the UK.

[Pictures from Flickr - some rights are reserved: London Stansted, Beijing, Berlin Tempelhof, Brussels airport, Hong Kong, Madrid, Dublin, Bangkok, London Heathrow