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U-Tapao International Airport
Commercial airport serving Pattaya, Thailand From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport (IATA: UTP, ICAO: VTBU), also spelled Utapao and U-Taphao, is a dual-use civil–military public international airport serving the cities of Rayong and Pattaya in Eastern Thailand in the Ban Chang district of Rayong province.[6][7] It also serves as the U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield, home of the Royal Thai Navy First Air Wing. U-Tapao is the home of a large Thai Airways maintenance facility, servicing that airline's aircraft as well as those of other customers.[8]
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History
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Vietnam War
U-Tapao was built by the United States to accommodate B-52 bombers for missions in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia during the Vietnam War.[9] Construction began on 15 October 1965 and was completed on 2 June 1966.[10] U-Tapao was the primary Southeast Asian airfield for USAF B-52 bombers, called "Bee-hasip-sawng" (B-52) by the local Thais.[11] U-Tapao was a front-line base along with the other US bases at Korat, Udon, Ubon, Nakhon Phanom, and Takhli. The USAF B-52s made regular sorties over North Vietnam and North Vietnamese-controlled areas in Laos, carrying an average of 108 500-pound and 750-pound bombs per mission. U-Tapao was a regular stop on Bob Hope's Christmas shows for the troops.[12]
Accidents and incidents
- On 28 October 1977, a Douglas DC-3 of Vietnam Airlines en route from Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Ho Chi Minh City, to Duong Dong Airport, Phu Quoc, Vietnam, was hijacked and diverted to U-Tapao Air Base to refuel. Two Vietnamese officials on the aircraft were killed in the hijacking.[13]
- In 2008, with the temporary closure of Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports in late November because they had been occupied by anti-government protestors, U-Tapao became for a time Thailand's main supplementary international gateway. Many airlines arranged special flights to and from U-Tapao to ferry international passengers stranded by the closure of the Suvarnabhumi Airport.[14][15][16][17][18]
Concessions
In late 2018, King Power was awarded a ten-year contract to operate U-Tapao duty-free shops. A partnership between Thai retailer Central Department Store Company (Central Group) and DFS Group will manage retail shops and services, mainly food and beverage, also for 10 years.[19]
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Airlines and destinations
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Location and transport
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U-Tapao Airport near Sattahip on the Gulf of Thailand, about 50 kilometres (31 mi) south of Pattaya's Walking Street, is 140 kilometres (87 mi) south of Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport and 190 kilometres (120 mi) south of Bangkok's Don Mueang Airport.
- Local transport:
- Shared Minibus or Van, cost ฿250 - ฿350 per person and take 1 hr 30 min from U Tapao Airport to Pattaya.[24]
- Taxi from Airport's fixed-fare taxi counter, cost ฿800-฿1,000 per car for 40-60 min ride to hotel in Pattaya area.[24]
- Pre-booked private transfers with hotels or private providers cost ฿999+ per car for 40-60 min ride to Pattaya area.[24]
- Bus
- From Suvarnabhumi Airport Level-1 (Ground Floor) near Gate-8, buses are available to Pattaya's North Pattaya Bus Terminal (6 km north of Walking Street) and the Pattaya Jomtien Bus Station (4 km south of Walking Street) costing between ฿150-฿300 one way per passenger and take about 2 hours.
- From Don Mueang Airport's (DMK) first-floor of terminal from platform 4-5, buses are available to Pattaya which cost around ฿155 one way with 2 hours and 30 minutes travel time with drop off points in Pattaya at North Pattaya Junction, Central Pattaya Junction, South Pattaya Junction, and Thepprasit Junction.
- Highway:
- Motorway 7 connects Pattaya to Bangkok.
- Rail
- U Tapao Airport will be directly connected to the Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Mueang International Airport, both in Bangkok, via the under-construction Don Mueang–Suvarnabhumi–U-Tapao high-speed railway linking Thailand's top 3 busiest airports.[25]
Future: airport expansion plan
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Expansion plan was envisaged in 2018,[26] project financing for the 6 phase development plan with annual passenger capacity of 60 million[25] was approved in 2022,[27] and partial implementation of phase-1 commenced in November 2025 with commencement of construction of the second runway.[28]
Since Bangkok's two international airports are operating beyond capacity, the government envisaged to expand U-Tapao into a third major airport of Thailand. Consequently, U Tapao Terminal 2 was officially opened in February 2019.[26] The 2022 Thai Government approved 6 phase[25] expansion plan for U-Tapao Airport, envisages its annual passenger capacity to 60 million with runway expansions, several new and better connectivity to the Eastern Economic Corridor.[27] In 2025, the partial implementation of phase-1 of U Tapao Airport expansion plan was scaled down from 6 million to 3 million passengers per year due to the delay in construction of Don Mueang–Suvarnabhumi–U-Tapao high-speed railway (High-Speed Rail Linking Three Busiest Airports of Thailand), and the full phase-1 with 6 million passenger capacity will be implemented once the 80% of High Speed Rail passenger numbers target is achieved.[25]
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References
External links
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