An airline industry group is urging a moratorium on new flights in and out of Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport to prevent any more congestion.

The Airline Operators Committee (AOC) has urged a halt to new flights to ease overcrowding, which has got progressively worse in recent years.

“Authorities should come to their senses and realise Suvarnabhumi can no longer accommodate more flights beyond the current level. We know it’s a painful decision,” said AOC chairman Louis Moser.

Moser says it will only get worse later this month with the start of the winter season which generally sees a rise in the number of flights by about 10%.

Recent data by Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT) showed 52.4 million passengers passed through the airport this year, despite it only being designed to accommodate 45 million.