U-Tapao International Airport
U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport ท่าอากาศยานอู่ตะเภา ระยอง–พัทยา | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public / military | ||||||||||
| Owner | Royal Thai Navy | ||||||||||
| Operator | Department of Airports | ||||||||||
| Serves | |||||||||||
| Location | Ban Chang district, Rayong province, Thailand | ||||||||||
| Opened | 2 June 1966 | ||||||||||
| Hub for |
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| Elevation AMSL | 13 m / 42 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 12°40′47″N 101°00′18″E / 12.67972°N 101.00500°E | ||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||
| Maps | |||||||||||
Location of airport in the Bay of Bangkok | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2018) | |||||||||||
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Source: DAFIF | |||||||||||
U-Tapao–Rayong–Pattaya International Airport (IATA: UTP, ICAO: VTBU), also spelled Utapao and U-Taphao, is a joint civil–military public international airport serving the cities of Rayong and Pattaya in Eastern Thailand. It is in the Ban Chang district of Rayong province.
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. Due to the blockade of Bangkok's airports by opposition protesters, U-Tapao briefly became the main air gateway to Thailand between 26 November and 5 December 2008. As both of Bangkok's international airports essential to the country's tourist boom are operating beyond capacity as of 2015, U-Tapao in particular has been eyed as an alternate international gateway due to its relative proximity to the capital.