BergerWorld: 4th Quarter 2006

Phuket International Airport (HKT) is Thailand's second largest airport in terms of passenger and cargo volume. In 2006, 4.5 million tourists used HKT to flock to the province's famed beaches and an estimated 6.2 million are expected by 2011. In response, the Airports Organization of Thailand (AOT) commissioned the Berger Group, in association with INDEX and Lanna Engineering, to update the HKT master plan. The Team's assignment included carrying out a series of studies, preparing designs and cost estimates for the development of new facilities and evaluating the opportunities for developing HKT into a regional aviation hub.

Berger experts identified two alternatives for upgrading HKT. The first consisted of the construction of a new runway and the upgrading of the existing parallel taxiway. The second included the extension of the existing runway and the construction of a new parallel taxiway. Both alternatives included the construction of an international passenger terminal building, aircraft parking stands and a parking lot.

Berger experts calculated the costs for each alternative, assessed the economic and environmental impacts of the construction and evaluated the impact of each on air traffic and navigation as well as airport efficiency. The Team is also preparing the detailed designs of the runway and associated taxiways.