Phatthalung to push airport plan

Authorities and the local tourism sector plan to build an airport in Phatthalung to promote the province as a new logistics hub for the southern region.
The plan is expected to be proposed to the cabinet shortly and is touted as a way to help the government meet its economic goals.
The Phatthalung governor submitted a letter to the permanent secretary of the Transport Ministry on Sept 30 seeking cabinet approval for the airport.
The document contained a final report on a feasibility study, a study on public-private coordination, and the results of a meeting of the joint committee on Phatthalung Economic Development, and meetings of other working groups.
The airport, says the report, will help maximise local competitiveness in transport and tourism, create employment, and generate income for Phatthalung and nearby provinces, including Nakhon Si Thammarat.
The airport, to be located halfway between the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea, would also improve logistics between the two coasts, especially the Songkhla deep-sea port and Trang port, which will later be developed into a deep-sea port.
It will help boost agricultural trade by offering convenience in transporting goods to other areas of the country.
Kittipit Klabkhun, president of the Phatthalung Chamber of Commerce, said the airport will cover 1,496 rai of land in Khuan Maphrao sub-district of Mueang district. He said the project will include an aircraft maintenance centre, in which the private sector has shown great interest.
The airport would also help support Phatthalung’s health tourism strategy by pushing it as a hub of traditional Thai and alternative medicine.
An Environmental Impact Assessment will be conducted in 2026, he said.
Mr Kittipit said local authorities are also looking at other projects including a bridge across Songkhla Lake — a 4.7 billion baht investment. The bridge would link Road 4004 at Ban Laem Chong Thanon in Phatthalung’s Khao Chaison district to Ban Laem Yang in Songkhla’s Krasae Sin district.