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U-Tapao International Airport

Coordinates: 12°40′47″N 101°00′18″E / 12.67972°N 101.00500°E / 12.67972; 101.00500
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(Redirected from VTBU)
"U-Tapao" redirects here. For the military use of this facility, see U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield. For other uses, see U Tapao (disambiguation).

U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport
ท่าอากาศยานอู่ตะเภา ระยอง–พัทยา
Summary
Airport typePublic / military
OwnerRoyal Thai Navy
OperatorDepartment of Airports
ServesChonburi and Rayong provinces
LocationBan Chang, Rayong, Thailand
Opened2 June 1966; 59 years ago (1966-06-02)
Hub for
Elevation AMSL13 m / 42 ft
Coordinates12°40′47″N 101°00′18″E / 12.67972°N 101.00500°E / 12.67972; 101.00500
Websitewww.utapao.com
Maps
Map
UTP/VTBU is located in Rayong Province
UTP/VTBU
UTP/VTBU
Location of airport in Rayong Province
UTP/VTBU is located in Bay of Bangkok
UTP/VTBU
UTP/VTBU
Location of airport in the Bay of Bangkok
UTP/VTBU is located in Thailand
UTP/VTBU
UTP/VTBU
Location of airport in Thailand
Map
Interactive map of U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
18/36 3,505 11,500 Asphalt
Statistics (October 2023 - September 2024)
Total passengers[3]370,210 Decrease0.17%
International passengers227,506 Decrease0.26%
Domestic passengers142,704 Increase0.04%
Aircraft movements5,788 Decrease0.05%
Source: DAFIF[4][5]

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]

History

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Vietnam War

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Main article: American use of U-Tapao Airport during the 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

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  • 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

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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]

Airlines and destinations

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AirlinesDestinations
AirAsia Kuala Lumpur–International
Azur Air Seasonal charter: Barnaul, Irkutsk , Khabarovsk, Krasnoyarsk–International, Moscow–Vnukovo, Samara, Ufa, Vladivostok, Samara, Yekaterinburg, Novosibrisk, Novokuznetsk
Bangkok Airways Koh Samui,[20] Phuket[21]
Belavia Seasonal charter: Minsk
Nordwind Airlines Seasonal charter: Moscow–Sheremetyevo, Yekaterinburg, Novosibrisk, Krasnoyarsk
Thai Lion Air Chiang Mai, Udon Thani
Qanot Sharq Seasonal charter: Tashkent

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.

  • 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).
    • From Don Mueang Airport's (DMK) first-floor of terminal from platform 4-5, buses are available to Pattaya taking 30 minutes travel time with drop off points in Pattaya at North Pattaya Junction, Central Pattaya Junction, South Pattaya Junction, and Thepprasit Junction.

Future: airport expansion plan

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Expansion plan was envisaged in 2018,[23] project financing for the 6 phase development plan with annual passenger capacity of 60 million[22] was approved in 2022,[24] and partial implementation of phase-1 commenced in November 2025 with commencement of construction of the second runway.[25]

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.[23] The 2022 Thai Government approved 6 phase[22] 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.[24] 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.[22]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ flybudget line
  2. ^ pattaya airways
  3. ^ "Passenger statistics for 2015–2019" (PDF). U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport (in Thai).[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ "Airport information for VTBU". World Aero Data. Archived from the original on 5 March 2019. Data current as of October 2006. Source: DAFIF.
  5. ^ Airport information for UTP at Great Circle Mapper. Source: DAFIF (effective October 2006).
  6. ^ "U Tapao-Pattaya International Airport" (PDF). U Tapao Airport Authority. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 May 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2013.
  7. ^ "Home". U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  8. ^ "Thai Airways International: Technical Department --- U-Tapao Second Maintenance Center ---". www.thaitechnical.com. Archived from the original on 6 July 2008.
  9. ^ Janssen, Peter (6 June 2017). "Military airbase set for commercial take-off in Thailand". Asia Times. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  10. ^ "History". U-Tapao Rayong Pattaya International Airport. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  11. ^ Ellis, John. "U-Tapao Air Base" (Historical photos). Cohojohn.tripod.com. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  12. ^ "Bob Hope Visit". Thailand Dog Handlers. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  13. ^ "Hijacking description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  14. ^ "ANA International Flight Status". Fli.ana.co.jp. Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2008.
  15. ^ "Cathay Pacific". Cathay Pacific.
  16. ^ "Latest update on Bangkok, Utapao and Europe flights". EVA Airways. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
  17. ^ "THAI Operates 34 Special Inbound and Outbound Flights on 2 December 2008". THAI. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
  18. ^ Page 6, South China Morning Post, 30 November 2008.[not specific enough to verify]
  19. ^ Moodie, Martin (21 November 2018). "King Power wins U-Tapao Airport duty free contract; Central Group/DFS alliance gains duty paid and services". The Moodie Davitt Report. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  20. ^ "Ko Samui, Thailand USM". OAG Flight Guide Worldwide. 27 (2). Luton, United Kingdom: OAG Aviation Worldwide Limited: 638–638. August 2025. ISSN 1466-8718. OCLC 41608313.
  21. ^ "Phuket, Thailand HKT". OAG Flight Guide Worldwide. 27 (2). Luton, United Kingdom: OAG Aviation Worldwide Limited: 1033–1034. August 2025. ISSN 1466-8718. OCLC 41608313.
  22. ^ a b c d U-Tapao Airport Expansion Hits Turbulence as Phase 1 Investment Scale Reviewed, nationthailand.com, 21 July 2025.
  23. ^ a b "Terminal 2 at U-Tapao airport to be fully opened in February". The Nation. 8 November 2018. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
  24. ^ a b Mail, Pattaya (6 November 2022). "Massive expansion approved for U-Tapao-Rayong-Pattaya International Airport". Pattaya Mail. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  25. ^ https://aseannow.com/topic/1380248-navy-launches-second-runway-project-at-u-tapao-airport/ Navy Launches Second Runway Project at U-Tapao Airport], aseannow.com, 29 Nov 2025.
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Media related to U-Tapao International Airport at Wikimedia Commons

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