No flights to new Betong airport, Yala tourism officials talk promotions to boost travel

After the highly-publicised launch of the new airport in Southern Thailand’s Yala went sour, with Nok Air suspending flights to the airport due to a lack of passengers, tourism officials in the Betong area plan to offer discounts on hotel rooms and food for travellers to help the flights takeoff.

Nation Thailand says the Betong Airport was “built to boost tourism and trade in the southernmost border provinces,” but most western tourists have been advised by their home countries not to travel to the Deep South region bordering Malaysia as the area is still prone to violence due to the religious separatist insurgency. Just this month, 10 rangers and civilians were injured in a bomb attack in Yala’s Bannang Sata district and banners reading “Free Patani, Patani is not Siam” were put up in several spots around Yala, prompting security in the province to tighten.

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