Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport installed new Fast Track facilities in February of this year but the experience so far has been absolutely dismal as they are notoriously understaffed and way too many passengers are allowed to use them. Now...

Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport installed new Fast Track facilities in February of this year but the experience so far has been absolutely dismal as they are notoriously understaffed and way too many passengers are allowed to use them.

Now the airport has apparently gone even further and is allowing Economy Class passengers with small children to use the “Fast Track” at will, making a bad situation even worse.

Bangkok Airport used to have several Fast Track entranceways throughout the departure zone, one exclusively for Thai Airways on the left and then two regular ones for all other airlines in the middle and end-section of the terminal.

Over the years, the airport authorities have amended who is authorized to use the fast track and, at some point, discontinued the Fast Track passes that used to be collected.

When they rolled this new system out in February, I already criticized that it would be unworkable given the number of departures and the new groups of eligible passengers:

New Departure Security & Immigration Fast Track Area At Bangkok Airport Now In Operation

Immigration also just installed automated readers for foreigners to use while leaving the country (not at the Fast Track lanes, though).

The problem this time isn’t immigration, but the security, which isn’t even adequately staffed most of the time, and also the eligible passengers, as quoted below:

I’m quoting myself from the old article because what I said before the opening has quickly turned into reality:

… The new system is absolutely ridiculous and has nothing to do with a “Premium Lane” anymore. The only ones who are NOT eligible to use the fast track (slow track) are able-bodied adults who travel in Economy Class unless they accompany one token eligible passenger such as disabled/seniors/parents with children.

Oh yeah, certain visa types are eligible for the fast track as well. And Air Crew which is constantly choking up the checkpoints. Why not make a separate security lane available for crew rather than funnel them together with the passengers and make everything grind to a halt for them?

I really hoped that AOT officials would finally come to their senses that the system where they let everyone through the fast lane but who was I kidding? That would make way too much sense. …

The last point they took to heart is that Air Crew now DOES have its own lane and no longer merges with the passengers.

It didn’t take very long, however, for the lineups to escalate, which is especially sad because the old system worked rather well and was always speedy.

Now it looks like this:

Last week, it was especially bad; from the time we were done at the check-in counter to our arrival at the Oman Air Lounge, it took 55 minutes. That has absolutely nothing to do with a fast track service anymore, Bangkok Airport (AOT) is completely out of their mind.

This wasn’t a one-off; in the fall, I left twice in the early morning hours for a 7 am flight, and only ONE security belt and immigration booth were open.

Something has to be done to alleviate this situation, and the key to this is restricting Fast Track access to those groups it is usually being given to worldwide:

In Thailand, it’s a religious custom to give privileges and polite treatment to Buddhist monks. Fine let them have it, in 15 years of traveling to Thailand I never had a whole group of monks hold up the line. However, are pastors, imams, and rabbis being treated with preference as well, or does that only go for Buddhist monks?

To allow access for families with children goes way too far, seniors and specific visa classes shouldn’t receive Fast Track treatment either. If someone isn’t able to walk, then get an assistance service.

Conclusion

This kind of Fast Track grouping ends up collecting almost half of all passengers flying out, especially from Thailand. Why is the airport management making another unnecessary disaster out of a situation?

Having children in tow simply shouldn’t confer privileges at the airport, that’s totally out of control. Combine it with a lack of staffing and rather unproductive work processes, and there you have it.

In mid-2023, AOT installed automatic boarding pass readers for the general Economy Class checkpoints, yet here at the “Fast Track,” you have people looking with big eyes for almost a minute over boarding passes, probably trying to figure out if the passenger is actually eligible. A complete mess, get it together!

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