Department of Airports prepares its 11 airports for USAP

BANGKOK, July 24 (TNA) -- The Department of Airports is preparing its 11 airports for the Universal Security Audit Program (USAP) of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and plans to spend 2 billion baht to improve their safety systems in two years. Darun Saengchai, director-general of the department, said the preparation followed the ICAO’s implementation of the USAP at Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports last week. He said ICAO normally conducts the program randomly every 2-4 years and his department has prepared budgets for safety standard improvement at its 11 airports. This year the improvement worth 700 million baht takes place at Krabi, Udon Thani and Surat Thani airports. Next year the improvement plan would cover Ubon Ratchathani, Khon Kaen, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Trang, Phitsanulok, Nakhon Phanom, Sakon Nakhon and Narathiwat airports with total spending of 1.8 billion baht. These airports provide commercial services and are crowded. The USAP-oriented improvement would include luggage security systems which would not let passengers open their luggage after check-ins. Besides, explosive screening facilities would be installed to detect explosives that would be removed and destroyed, Mr Darun said. His department supervises 28 airports in the country. Their passengers are rising by 200% in the past five years. Their number reached 174 million last year, he said. (END)