Airport Quick Facts
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It begins: the Suvarnabhumi Airport
On January 19, 2002, after 40 years of delays, the foundation stone of Bangkok's new international airport was finally laid by HM The King.

Official name
Suvanabhumi Airport (this is the official name chosen by HM The King) - this will become Bangkok's only international airport and the present international airport, Don Muang, will be for domestic flights only. BTW: The current airport, Don Muang, is the busiest in Southeast Asia and the 22nd busiest airport in the world.

Former names Include
Nong Ngu Hao Airport (which translates to "Cobra Swamp" - this is the name of the area where the airport is located), Second Bangkok International Airport (SBIA) & New Bangkok International Airport (NBIA) - this last name is also the name of the company set up to oversee construction of the facility

How is the name of new airport spelled in English?
New Bangkok International Airport Co. spells it "Suvarnabhumi Airport." The international press seem to be using this spelling also. (NBIA is one of two organizations in charge of the project--the other is the Airports Authority of Thailand)

How is it pronounced?
"soo-wan-na-poom"

What does it mean?
"Golden Peninsula"or "Golden Land"--a traditional name for the Thailand-Cambodia-Laos-Burma region

Website?
The address has been changed once again, but the website is excellent: the official new Bangkok Airport site.

What does the motto, "Towards Aeropolis Reality in 2004" on the official website mean?
We have no idea. UPDATE (October 23, 2002): We just noticed that the phrase has been changed to "Towards Aeropolis Reality in 2005."

Location
Bang Phli District, Samut Prakan (30km east of Bangkok)

Est. Total Project Investment Cost
120 billion baht ($US 2.7 billion)
See the breakdown of engineering costs at the Bangkok Post.

Who was the architect?
The winning design was from the MJTA group of consultants, comprising Murphy Jahn Architecture and TAMS consultant (US) and ACT Engineering consultant (Thailand). From the Murphy Jahn website one can see how the design is similar to their other work.

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