Nok Air flight DD9100 landed at Phuket airport at 10:45am, with 171 passengers on board welcomed by airport staff at Gate 9 of the Domestic Terminal.
The arrival marked the new Nok Air service operating one flight a week in each direction between Phuket and Ubon Ratchathani.
The inbound Ubon Ratchathani-Phuket flight operates on Fridays, departing the Isan city at 8:45am.
The return flight from Phuket to Ubon Ratchathani departs the island on Sundays at 3:45pm.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Ubon Ratchathani office praised the new flights for connecting two major provinces, one in the South and the other in the Northeast.
“The flights help support the travel needs of people to travel more conveniently and quickly, connecting the big cities, bringing them closer together,” said the TAT Ubon Ratchathani office in its announcement.
Meanwhile, AirAsia has announced that it will resume direct flights between Phuket and Singapore starting Tuesday (Apr 12), “hoping to help revive the tourism industry and responding to the policy of opening the country”.
Arun Lilapanthisit, Manager of the Thai Air Asia branch at Phuket International Airport, announced yesterday that AirAsia will operate two flights a week, every Tuesday and Saturday, between Phuket and Singapore.
The move is hoped to help tourism to the island during the Songkran holidays, Mr Aun said.
Mr Aun noted that AirAsia had been operating flights to and from Phuket for 12 years, and was supporting the drive to boost tourism to the island by re-opening flights connecting the island with 12 destinations throughout the country.
“Currently, there are five direct flights from Phuket, and in total more than 19 flights per day,” Mr Arun said.
“Direct flights to Don Mueang, Suvarnabhumi, Khon Kaen, Udon Thani and Chiang Mai have received a good response. During March there was an average passenger load of 78%, and advance reservations across all routes during Songkran is 80-90%,” Mr Arun said.
AirAsia is offering special promotion rates to help encourage tourists to take advantage of the flights during the Songkran holidays, Mr Aun added.
“Iit should be a good opportunity for AirAsia to play a part in stimulating the economy in Phuket. Meanwhile, AirAsia has also worked with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Singapore office to attract more tourists to come to Thailand,” he noted.
AirAsia currently offers the following flights operating out of Phuket International Airport:
Domestic routes:
- Phuket - Don Mueang: up to 9 flights per day
- Phuket - Suvarnabhumi: 4 flights per day
- Phuket - Khon Kaen: 4 flights per week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday)
- Phuket - Udon Thani: 4 flights per week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday)
- Phuket - Chiang Mai: up to 2 flights per day
International routes (starting Apr 12):
- Phuket - Singapore: 2 flights per week (Tuesday, Saturday)
- Phuket - Kuala Lumpur: 4 flights per week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday) operated by AirAsia, Malaysia flight code AK.
“For the year 2022, Thai AirAsia aims to carry 12.3 million passengers on all routes throughout the year with a fleet of 53 aircraft at the end of the year. We will gradually increase the number of routes and flight frequency, while Thai AirAsia remains fully committed to travel hygiene and safety standards,” Mr Aun said.